
Book 




CoRyrightN" 



COPVRIGHI DEPOSIT 



PRACTICAL DRY-FLY FISHING 



PRACTICAL 
DRY-FLY FISHING 



BY 

Emlyn M. Gill 




NEW YORK 

Charles Scribner's Sons 

1912 



Copyright, 1912, by Charles Scrihner's Sons 



Published May, 1912 



U> 



(o^ V 




1?, 

gCI.A314421 



CONTENTS 

Introduction vii 



PAGE 



CHAPTEB 



I. English Dry-Fly Methods Modified by 

American Ideas and Conditions . , 3 

II. '* Fishing the Rise" and "Fishing the 
Streamy'' and a Word About the Eng- 
lish ''Purist" 17 

in. Largely Statistical, Describing Rods, 
Lines, Leaders, Flies, and Other 
Tackle 27 

IV. Showing that Americans May Use the 
Dry-Fly, Though There Is No Ameri- 
can Fly-Fisher s Entomology ... 38 

V. Up-Stream Fishing, Methods of Casting, 
and Some Condensed Rules for Using 
the Floating Fly 46 

VI. Tying an Eyed-Fly to a Leader, and 

Some Practice on a Hypothetical Pool 58 

VII. In which the Beginner Visits a Real 
Pool, from which a Few Trout Are 

Taken 72 

[V] 



Contents 

CHAPTER PAGE 

VIII. How the Dry -Fly May Be Used on 
Rough Waters as Well as on Placid 
Pools 80 

IX. That Cruel Thing, the " Drag;' and How 

Its Evil Effects May Be Overcome . 91 

X. Wilderness Fishing Different from Tak- 
ing ** Educated" Trout from Much- 
Fished Streams 105 

XI. Often Dry-Fly Anglers Like Conditions 
that Prove the Waterloo of the Wet 
Fly Man 118 

XII. Fine and Far-Off Casting, and the Value 
of Close Fishing, When Throwing a 
Fly Up-Stream 128 

XIII. The Advantages of Stalking a Trout 
from Behind, and Examples of Good 
and Bad Generalship 138 

XIV. Two Old Trout of the Pools, and the 
Little Dry-Fly that Finally Accom- 
plished Their Ruin 157 

XV. Artificial Dry-Flies, and a Few Words 

About the Living Ephemeridce . . 172 

XVI. The History of the Floating Fly and 

Some of Its Interesting Literature . . 188 

Appendix 209 

[vi] 



INTRODUCTION 

No excuses or apologies are necessary 
for offering to American anglers a little 
treatise, worthy perhaps of a not more 
dignified name than ** hand-book," on 
dry-fly fishing. It may be said that 
the subject has been fully covered by 
a number of expert writers who have 
lived in the home of the dry-fly, Eng- 
land, and who have spent many years 
of their lives in practising this most 
delicate, artistic and fascinating of 
sports on the English chalk streams, 
so smooth, so placid, and fished so long 
and so constantly that to take from 
them successfully their highly "edu- 
cated" trout more scientific methods 
than those offered by the use of the wet 

[vii] 



Introduction 

fly had to be devised. As a matter of 
fact, any angling writer who thought 
for a moment that he could go over 
the technical ground covered by Mr. 
Frederic M. Halford, the greatest of 
English writers on dry-fly methods, and 
do it successfully without much repe- 
tition, or suggest many new or start- 
ling improvements over Mr. Halford's 
methods, would, indeed, exhibit a self- 
assurance that would be most abnor- 
mal, and he might properly be called an 
eccentric. Mr. Halford did not invent 
the dry-fly; but he has been an an- 
gling enthusiast from his boyhood days. 
He has been the happy possessor of a 
keen and studious mind. His one 
hobby throughout his long life has 
been the dry-fly. Most fortunately he 
has had almost unlimited time to de- 
vote to its study, and as a result he is 
the greatest recognized authority on 
[ viii ] 



Introduction 

this subject. When a very young man 
he began practising this method of 
anghng, and from that time he has 
used no other lure than the floating 
fly. When forty-five years old he 
retired from business, and since his 
retirement (he is now nearly seventy) 
has devoted his life mainly to the study 
of his favorite sport. Therefore, his 
works have become text-boohs, studied 
and followed by all other dry-fly an- 
glers and writers. 

But though twenty-three years have 
elapsed since his most important work 
appeared, it has produced but little 
effect upon American angling methods, 
and the number of Americans who have 
read his books is so comparatively small 
as to be almost a negligible quantity. 
Among the few who have studied his 
doctrines and followed his methods the 
effect has been great; they have be- 
[ixl 



Introduction 

come fascinated by dry-fly angling, 
and some of them practice it to the 
exclusion of all other methods. But 
up to 1911 the dry-fly had aroused 
little interest in this country, and if 
one of the very few enthusiasts men- 
tioned the subject to other anglers, he 
was very often met with the question, 
"What is the dry-fly?" 

With the exception of a few magazine 
articles, there has been practically no 
American hterature upon the subject. 
And yet, it seems to the author that 
there is a large field for it. During the 
past year the floating fly has been dis- 
cussed more and more by our anglers, 
and the author predicts that within a 
few years, in certain parts of our coun- 
try at least, the dry-fly will become as 
well known and as popular as the wet 
fly, or sunken lure, which has been 
recognized from our earliest angling 
[xl 



Introduction 

days as the one accepted method of 
taking trout on American streams; 
while the further prediction is confi- 
dently advanced that at least on the 
best known, most constantly fished 
streams of New York and Pennsyl- 
vania, and other similar waters, the 
dry-fly will rapidly supplant the wet 

fly. 

Mr. Halford and other English writ- 
ers have treated the dry-fly as a lure 
for the smooth, placid chalk streams 
of southern England. The writer will 
endeavor to show that it is equally 
efficient when used on our American 
streams, where conditions are some- 
what different. Therefore, while en- 
dorsing in general the methods of Mr. 
Halford, the author will write from 
the stand-point of an American angler, 
and will give simple directions, so far 
as he is able, for using this most fas- 

[xi] 



Introduction 

cinating lure upon American waters. 
Some minor differences in methods 
will appear. 

Owing to the great scarcity of Amer- 
ican dry-fly literature, and a very gen- 
eral desire manifested by many anglers 
of the writer's acquaintance for infor- 
mation on the subject of the floating 
fly, early in 1911 the author was re- 
quested by the editor of Field and 
Stream to write a few articles for be- 
ginners. He consented, but being un- 
willing to pose as an expert, or even 
as one of the American anglers most 
capable of instructing others, in his 
articles he explained that his position 
was that of a beginner willing to lend 
a helping hand to other beginners, to 
guide them in their first steps on the 
dry-fly path. This is his attitude in 
taking up the present work. There is 
a constantly growing number of wet 

[xii] 



Introduction 

fly fishermen who would Hke to use the 
dry-fly. But how shall they go about 
it? It is difficult, if not impossible, for 
the majority of anglers to find instruc- 
tors who take them upon the streams; 
it is next to impossible in this coun- 
try to procure Mr. Halford's early 
works; at the time these lines are 
written there is no American book 
upon the subject. It is the hope of 
the author, that some anglers so situ- 
ated may acquire from this little book 
at least a rudimentary knowledge of 
this beautiful art that will enable them 
afterward to follow alone the delight- 
ful paths travelled by the dry-fly en- 
thusiasts, and by practice become ex- 
perts. 

In treating a subject so fully covered 
by other writers — in this case, English 
writers almost exclusively — it would be 
unfair to withhold appropriate thanks 

[xiii] 



Introduction 

from those who have helped to make 
this book possible. First, I must speak 
of the kindness of Field and Stream in 
allowing me to use certain parts of ar- 
ticles written for that magazine; due 
acknowledgments have already been 
made to Mr. Halford. I should be 
lacking in all the ordinary instincts of 
courtesy if I did not mention my friend, 
Mr. George M. L. LaBranche, in the 
author's opinion one of the very best 
of all-around American anglers, and 
the most expert of American dry-fly 
fishermen. I have been on the streams 
with him, and when watching his work 
have seen by far the most skilful hand- 
ling of the fly that has ever come under 
my observation in an experience of 
thirty-eight years as an enthusiastic 
fly-fisherman. His knowledge of dry- 
fly methods and of the habits of the 
trout is profound. For about fifteen 
[xiv] 



Introduction 

years his sole method of taking these 
game fish has been by means of the 
floating fly. For many months we have 
"talked dry-fly" together, sometimes 
almost daily. I trust, however, that no 
reader will assume that in this book for 
beginners I shall attempt to transcribe 
the ideas of Mr. LaBranche, who 
doubtless will give them to the an- 
gling public himself at the proper 
time. But my frequent talks with him 
have become a part of my angling 
knowledge, and there is no way in 
which I can disassociate it in my mind 
from knowledge gained in other ways. 
Therefore I render thanks to him for 
any thoughts advanced in this book 
that he may, as he reads it, believe to 
have been the result of his own obser- 
vations and investigations, or of our 
various discussions of this subject. 
The floating fly has been looked upon 
[xv] 



Introduction 

very generally in America as an Eng- 
lish "fad," of value when used on the 
British chalk streams, but unsuitable 
for our American waters. This I be- 
lieve to be a very great mistake. To 
my personal knowledge, on certain 
streams, and under certain conditions, 
the dry-fly angler is successful when 
the wet fly fisherman fails; while in 
many cases the wet fly angler who be- 
comes expert with the floating lure 
never returns to the use of the sunken 

fly. 

In this work the author will confine 
himself as closely as possible to his sub- 
ject, the floating fly. The beauties of 
nature, one of the chief attractions, if 
not the principal pleasure, of a day on 
the trout stream, may be well left to 
such poetic pens as those of Dr. Henry 
van Dyke, and other masters of Eng- 
lish literature, while the habits of trout 
Ixvi] 



Introduction 

and their favorite lurking places are 
discussed in nearly every book on an- 
gling. We are now concerned with dry- 
fly methods only. 
New York, Mayy 1912. 



[xvii] 



PRACTICAL DRY-FLY FISHING 



CHAPTER I 

English Dry-Fly Methods Modi- 
fied by American Ideas and 
Conditions 



" ir ^ THAT is a dry-fly?" 

Y Y '^^^^ question, asked by 
a prominent sportsman at 
the annual Field Day of the Camp- 
Fire Club of America, at Mr. Ernest 
Thompson Seton's beautiful estate at 
Cos Cob, Conn., in the latter part of 
June, 1910, rather startled me for a 
moment, as the man who asked it had 
been a thorough out-door man all his 
life; had visited nearly all the haunts 
of big game in this country and in Can- 
ada; had shot at different times moun- 
tain sheep, mountain goat, moose, bear, 
antelope, elk, caribou^ various kinds of 
[31 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

deer, and other varieties of wild ani- 
mals, and had, as a rule, carried at least 
one fishing-rod with him on most of his 
trips, if not on all. I knew that he 
had been successful in luring many 
kinds of game-fish, as I had seen some 
of his records; and had also examined, 
mounted in his oflSce, fine specimens of 
large bass, silver trout, ouananiche, 
muscalonge, and other inhabitants of 
the streams and lakes. 

A day or two before this question 
was asked an article written by the au- 
thor had appeared, the general purpose 
of which had been to place the ques- 
tion seriously before American anglers, 
as to why they had not taken more in- 
terest in this most fascinating branch 
of angling, used so extensively for many 
years on the English chalk streams, 
and recognized almost universally by 
British anglers as the most sportsman- 
[41 



English Dry-Fly Literature 

like, most artistic, and most scientific 
of all methods of taking trout. In the 
article referred to there had been an 
important error — an error of omission. 
While believing that a comparatively 
small number of American anglers were 
familiar with dry-fly methods, yet I 
had assumed that all would know what 
was meant when the dry-fly or float- 
ing fly was mentioned. The first im- 
portant contribution to dry-fly litera- 
ture was made in England in 1851; 
and from that time until now in that 
country it has been one of the most 
fully discussed methods of fishing. 
Some of the British dry-fly books pub- 
lished within the past thirty years may 
be ranked properly among the great- 
est works of angling literature. Many 
American enthusiasts and collectors 
possess at least a few of the most im- 
portant of these works; and yet even 

[5] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

a slight investigation would show that 
their circulation in this country is by 
no means general. To ask the aver- 
age English sportsman the question 
propounded at the beginning of this 
chapter — '* What is a dry-fly?" — would 
be almost equivalent to asking an 
American to define base-ball. 

While it is true that the past year 
or two the floating fly has been dis- 
cussed more generally than ever before 
by American anglers, yet some of our 
old-timers — those who have been fly- 
fishing enthusiasts for years — have as- 
sumed that Americans have been fa- 
miliar with dry-fly methods since the 
publication, many years ago, of Mr. 
Halford's earlier works; but a little 
thought and observation, in the author's 
judgment, will prove this assumption to 
be entirely erroneous, and made possible 
only by that psychological condition 
[6] 



A Psychological Fallacy 

which often exists in the minds of ex- 
perts in many branches of learning that 
makes them think that merely because 
they are thoroughly familiar with a 
certain subject all others must share 
their knowledge in at least some degree. 
The fallacy of the line of reasoning 
that the works of the great English 
expert must have produced in this 
country a wide-spread familiarity with 
the angling methods advocated by him 
may be discovered easily by one who 
endeavors to procure in any of our 
leading cities a copy of Mr. HaKord's 
most important book from the be- 
ginner's stand-point — and I think from 
the stand-point of the expert as well 
— "Dry-Fly Fishing in Theory and 
Practice," published in 1889. For many 
months, some years ago, the author 
made a search for this work among 
New York dealers both in new and in 

[7] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

second-hand books, and failed to find 
a single copy. Later, after another 
equally thorough search for the same 
author's "Dry-Fly Entomology," the 
writer was compelled to send to Eng- 
land for it. 

From his early boyhood the author 
has been an angling enthusiast; as a 
believer in heredity there exists in his 
mind no doubt that some of his love 
of angling was transmitted by his par- 
ents and grandparents, to go no fur- 
ther back. This love of his favorite 
sport does not blossom like a flower 
in the happy days of the fishing sea- 
son, to wither away with the approach 
of winter. Many winter evenings are 
spent in his library, where he may se- 
lect for his evening entertainment one 
or more of several hundred of the most 
interesting angling books written since 
the days of Walton. He may go even 
[8] 



Angling Books, Old and New 

farther back than that, for once in a 
while he feels like reading from a rare 
old volume published in 1633 a few 
verses of the "Piscatorie Eclogs" by 
Phineas Fletcher, or from the Eng- 
lish translation made in 1722 of "Op- 
pian's HaKeutics." Of Enghsh works 
on the dry-fly he has endeavored to 
make a complete collection, and, unlike 
books in many libraries, these do not 
exist merely for ornament. They have 
been studied and their contents often 
discussed with angling friends. After 
having read many of the works of both 
old and modern angling writers one is 
forced to come to the conclusion that 
angling literature since the days of 
Walton has been one long series of 
repetitions. Here and there a book 
shines out conspicuous for the original- 
ity of its ideas. Were this the proper 
place for such a discussion it would be 

[9] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

a delight to mention these shining 
Hghts, and endeavor to show wherein 
they excelled in new ideas of value to 
the angling world. 

While Mr. Pulman explained dry-fly 
methods in 1851, yet when Mr. Hal- 
ford began to write, after an exhaust- 
ive study made on the trout streams 
themselves, he had practically a virgin 
field before him. Therefore his early 
books were entirely original in concep- 
tion, they described clearly and fully 
this important method of angling, and 
were contributions to angling literature 
of great and lasting value. That all 
writers coming after him must neces- 
sarily go over a certain part of the 
ground covered by him, however much 
they might differ with him in minor 
details, follows as a matter of course; 
for the entire theory of dry-fly fishing 
is founded on a comparatively few basic 
[10 1 



American Dry-Fly Methods 

principles upon which all experts agree. 
So the general rules governing the use 
of the dry-fly that will be described in 
this work resemble closely those ad- 
vocated by Mr. Halford and other 
English authors; but in all cases the 
methods are those used by the writer 
himself, which have been learned, first, 
by his early crude experiments, made 
before he had read any authoritative 
works on the subject; by study of the 
books by English writers; by experi- 
ences on the streams in the company 
of expert dry-fly anglers; and last, by 
many long discussions with several 
skilful users of the floating lure. The 
various differences between the methods 
that will be advocated for our American 
streams, and those described by English 
authorities for use on their chalk 
streams, will be pronounced in some 
details, and such things as the advo- 
[11] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

cacy of "fishing the stream" instead 
of "stalking the fish" and "fishing 
the rise" only, may seem heretical to 
what is known as the dry-fly "purist" 
of England. In this book we shall cast 
our fly wherever our judgment tells 
us that there should be a trout. Mr. 
George A. B. Dewar, in his most ex- 
cellent work, "The Book of the Dry- 
Fly," says: "The best short descrip- 
tion of the difference between wet and 
dry-fly fishing is that which describes 
the first as 'fishing the stream' and the 
second as 'fishing the rise.'" We can- 
not agree with this; there is no good 
reason for not "fishing the stream " with 
the floating fly. Then again we shall 
endeavor to show that while in Eng- 
land the dry-fly is considered the proper 
method to use only on smooth, placid 
water, yet it is equally eflficacious on our 
swifter and more turbulent streams. 

[12] 



Rods, English and American 

In the tackle, especially the rods, 
used, there will also be some differ- 
ences in ideas. It would be hard for 
an American angler to read carefully 
the descriptions of English rods con- 
tained in even the latest catalogues of 
some of the largest British tacklemakers 
without imagining that he had gone 
back several generations.* Some of 
their "light" rods are of a weight sel- 
dom if ever seen in this country. In- 
stead of the very beautifully made 
German silver suction ferules, with 
which all American anglers are familiar, 
they advertise various styles of *' lock- 
fast" joints which would be an eye- 
sore to any American fisherman. They 
also have rods with steel centres, and 
some of them are wound with steel or 
bronze wire on the outside. A well- 

* Many of the best anglers of England are now 
using our light American rods. 

[13 1 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

known dry-fly "purist" and angling 
writer, in a book published as late as 
1908, advocates the use of a rod eleven 
feet long, weighing eleven ounces — one 
that ''can easily be wielded single- 
handed." What strength must he 
possess who can wield such a weapon 
easily! 

Some views, entirely contrary to those 
held by English authorities, will be ex- 
pressed by the author, which he would 
be glad to designate "the American 
methods," if we had a number of dry- 
fly anglers sufficiently large to merit the 
somewhat ambitious title, "the Ameri- 
can school." 

Incidentally, some of these differences 
of opinion may meet with the severe 
criticisms of a few of the old-timers 
among American anglers, who read 
Halford in 1889, and who have regarded 
his book as almost sacred ever since. 
[14] 



Experts Not Infallible 

In dry-fly discussions it is sometimes 
customary for them to quote the ideas 
to which Mr. Halford gave utterance 
twenty-three years ago, and that is the 
end of the argument; the case has been 
decided by the court of last appeal. 
We admire Mr. Halford, but we would 
not thrust upon him an infalHbility 
which we feel very sure he would have 
no desire to claim, especially if he were 
to give advice in regard to fishing 
American streams; while it is at least 
possible that in the years that have 
elapsed since 1889 he may have changed 
or modified some of the views he then 
expressed. As late as February 25, 
1912, Mr. Halford said, in a letter to 
the author of this book: ''I note what 
you say about the absence of rises on 
your streams. I have had similar ex- 
periences in England, and have, like 
you, found it profitable to float a fly 
[15] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

over a likely spot, especially if a good 
fish is seen in good position and likely 
to feed." 



[16] 



CHAPTER II I 

.__^ ^ ^_ _ j 

Fishing the Rise'' and ''Fishing I 
the Stream/' and a Word ( 
About the English ''Purist" | 



THE theory of dry-fly fishing is 
founded on the use of an arti- 
ficial fly that is an exact imita- 
tion* of a natural insect, in size, shape, 
and color, and so made that it will not 
easily sink; it is cast up-stream and al- 

* Several times in this book I shall speak of flies 
tied in exact imitation of natural insects. It will 
be readily understood, especially if one looks at 
some of our common insects through a microscope, 
and sees with what wonderful delicacy they are 
formed, how impossible it would be to fashion with 
feathers, silks, and other materials at the command 
of the fly-maker, exact reproductions, from a tech- 
nical and scientific stand-point, of live insects. The 
author means by "exact imitations" artificial flies 
that have been made to match in size, shape, color, 
and other details the original insect with all possible 
fidelity. 

[17] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

lowed to float down on the surface of 
the water with no other motion than 
that imparted by the current. 

However much anglers may disagree 
about many theories, yet on these 
points all writers, all experts, and all 
users of the floating fly are apparently 
in accord. They all accept the exact 
imitation theory — a bone of conten- 
tion among wet fly anglers for many 
years. There is no divergence of opin- 
ion in regard to fishing up-stream — an- 
other topic of discussion among the 
wet fly men that probably will never 
be settled to the satisfaction of all. 
And the proposition that the dry-fly 
must float down with the current, with 
no other motion whatever, is univer- 
sally agreed to. So in many ways the 
dry-fly fishermen form a happy and 
harmonious family, and the knotty 
problems that are forever coming up 

[18] 



Ways of the Dry-FJy Purist 

to cause disagreements among the 
users of the sunken fly are reduced to 
a minimum. 

And still harmony does not always 
reign supreme among members of the 
English floating fly fraternity. The 
dry-fly "purist," as he is known, casts 
his fly usually only when he sees a trout 
rising; he "stalks" the fish; if he sees 
a rise, he goes within casting distance 
of the spot, carefully places his fly so 
that it falls exactly where the trout 
had risen, or just above it, that the 
fly may float down over the fish. If 
he does not get a rise, it is not unusual 
for him to try a fly of a different pat- 
tern; if he finally gives up in his at- 
tempt to catch this particular trout, 
he looks for another rising fish, but 
does not make another cast until he 
again sees a rise. If no rises occur 
within his vision during the day, he 

[19] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

does not wet his line. Some of this 
cult carry field-glasses with which they 
scan the surface of the stream. 

These methods undoubtedly mark a 
very high type of sportsmanship in an- 
gling; perhaps I should be somewhat 
tempted to say the highest type of 
sportsmanship if I did not have reason 
to believe that our method of taking a 
fish that has not already indicated its 
exact location to the fisherman requires 
at least as much skill on the part of 
the angler as the purist's method of 
fishing the rise only, where the exact 
whereabouts of the fish is known. It 
seems to me that when an angler sees 
a rising fish, within casting distance, 
the battle is at least half won. 

An American, with a mind capable 
of seeing humorous features in almost 
all things, and also at times not be- 
yond the temptation of indulging in 

[20] 



Gloom by the Riverside 

ridicule, may easily see an opening for 
poking fun at the disappointed purist, 
as he returns at evening without once 
having cast a fly during the day. In 
fact, he does not escape ridicule in 
England; he has been the victim of 
much sarcasm, even from some mem- 
bers of the British angling fraternity. 
Mr. G. E. M. Skues, a bright and at 
times sarcastic English writer, says, 
in his ''Minor Tactics of the Chalk 
Stream": "I know of no sight more 
gloomy than that of a golfer pain- 
fully tramping from shot to shot. But 
perhaps the next gloomiest sight is the 
angler, who, with perhaps but a single 
day at his disposal, lounges hour by 
hour by the side of the main river, 
waiting with such patience as he can 
muster for the rise which comes not." 
The strict purist, in turn, has retorted 
to those who are incUned to make of 

[21] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

him a ridiculous figure, by calling all 
who do not adopt his methods "poach- 
ers." It would not be fair, however, 
to the British angler — men of the Hal- 
ford type — to convey an impression 
that ill-natured criticism is common 
among the British sportsmen. I have 
read much of their literature, bearing 
on all sides of the question, and have 
found a general inclination to be tol- 
erant of each other's opinions, and 
most courteous in their arguments. 
Their ideas of sportsmanship are high, 
a condition that I believe is very gen- 
eral among dry-fly anglers everywhere. 
The fascination of the game seems to 
be the attraction of this method of 
fishing, and not the "heavy creel" at 
the end of the day. 

The purist's method of angling, 
sportsmanlike and praiseworthy though 
it may be, is not, I think, the style of 

[22] 



When Patience Has Its Limits 

dry-fly fishing that would generally ap- 
peal to American anglers, even though 
conditions on our streams made it at 
all times possible. It is diflBcult to 
imagine an American fly-fisherman so 
patient that he would spend a day on 
the stream without casting a fly. In 
the first place, he enjoys the practice 
of casting, whether the fish rise or not. 
Then again, abundant experience has 
taught our American anglers that on 
some of our near-by streams they may 
often pass an entire day without see- 
ing a trout rise at a natural insect. 
So the dry-fly angler of this country 
begins casting when he reaches the 
stream, more or less "for general re- 
sults," as the Englishman might call 
it; but the work of an American ex- 
pert is not always a bunghng perform- 
ance, and frequently there is very little 
"hit-or-miss" about it. He generally 

[23 1 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

shows a keen knowledge of the habits 
of the trout, and where they should 
be l^'^ing in wait for their food. His 
methods may differ from those of the 
English purist in that instead of 
easting at the rise, he casts at those 
places where experience has taught 
him that the trout hide, live, and seek 
their food. There is nothing more 
skilful to be seen on a stream than the 
casting of a dry-fly expert. It is sel- 
dom except when watching them that 
I have seen flies 'light like thistle- 
down"; or that I have been deceived 
for a moment into thinking that an 
artificial fly was a natural insect as it 
fluttered through the air to the surface 
of the water. 

But no American fisherman familiar 
with English angling literature can 
help feeling admiration for the Eng- 
lish dry-fly enthusiast's deep study of 

[24] 



Angling Entomologists 

his favorite sport. The Enghsh ex- 
pert is an entomologist and knows upon 
what insects the trout feed, and as a 
rule finds out what insect they are tak- 
ing on that particular day and hour 
that he is on the stream; and from his 
fly box he selects a fly tied in exact im- 
itation in form, size, and color of the 
living insect. How small a part has a 
knowledge of entomology played, as a 
general rule, in American trout fishing ! 
The dry-fly angler endeavors to pre- 
sent the fly to the fish in the most nat- 
ural manner possible. He knows that 
weak, flying insects cannot swim against 
a current with the speed of a torpedo 
boat, and that they do not move about 
under the surface by starts and jerks. 
He reasons that if a winged insect is on 
the surface of a running stream it can 
have but one action; that is the mo- 
tion imparted by the current. In other 

[25] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

words, the fly simply floats on the sur- 
face of the water; and so his artificial 
lures came to be known as dry-flies or 
floating flies. 

And from this comes the whole the- 
ory of dry-fly fishing, as described 
briefly at the beginning of this chapter: 
The exact imitation, and the fly that 
floats down-stream with a natural mo- 
tion. If any movement is given to the 
fly, other than that imparted by the 
current, the dry-fly angler's theory is 
that the trout will look upon it as an 
entirely unnatural proceeding, some- 
thing that it has discovered that live 
flies will not do, and that therefore the 
lure will have no attraction whatever 
for the fish. 



[26 



I CHAPTER in 

J ^. 

I Largely Statistical, Describing 
{ Rods, Lines, Leaders, Flies, 
\ and Other Tackle 



)1 S to the equipment necessary for 
/-% this method of fishing, the au- 
thor will assume that the reader 
is thoroughly familiar with the proper 
clothing to wear, the several styles of 
wading trousers or wading stockings, 
landing-net, reel, creel, and various 
things of minor importance, and in 
discussing this part of the subject will 
confine himself principally to rods, 
lines, leaders, and flies. 

The rod is generally and properly 
regarded as the most important part 
of a fisherman's outfit. There is noth- 
ing that can equal a good rod of split- 

[27] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

bamboo. For dry-fly fishing the rod 
should have plenty of what is com- 
monly known as ''backbone"; that is, 
it should not be weak or "whippy." 
It may be nine, nine and one-half, or 
ten feet long, though, perhaps, the ten- 
foot rod is the favorite.* It is impos- 
sible to describe a rod adequately 
by merely giving weight for length, 
for the very simple reason that one 
nine-foot rod of six ounces may have 
much less power, backbone, and resili- 
ency, than another of the same length 
weighing four and one-half ounces. 
What are known as four-ounce or five- 
ounce tournament rods, weighing four 
and three-quarter ounces and five and 
one-half or five and three-quarter 
ounces, respectively (an allowance of 

*The favorite of all rods used by the author is 
nine feet long and weighs, with metal reel seat, four 
and three-quarter ounces. 

[28] 



Weights of Rods and Lines 

three-quarters of an ounce is always 
made for a metal reel seat in fly-casting 
tournaments), are in my opinion ideal 
rods for the purpose. Not, however, 
that tournament rods are at all nec- 
essary. The author has several rods 
that were not built for tournament 
casting, but which are ideal for dry-fly 
fishing — one in particular, nine and one- 
half feet long, weighing five and one- 
half ounces, full of backbone, snap, and 
ginger, and easily capable of handling 
an English water-proofed D tapered 
hne, a line much heavier than lines 
usually used in fishing. There are 
several reasons why a strong, power- 
ful rod should be chosen for dry-fly 
work. A heavier line is used than is 
customary in ordinary fly-fishing, for 
reasons that will be explained; the rod 
is called upon to do much more work, 
for in using the dry-fly, after each cast 
[29] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

there must be several casts in the air, 
or ''false casts," for the purpose of dry- 
ing the fly, and lengthening the line be- 
fore the insect again touches the water. 
Therefore the rod should be powerful, 
though not necessarily heavy; in fact, 
unless one likes to have a tired wrist 
at the end of the day, an unnecessar- 
ily heavy rod is anything but desirable. 
Incidentally it may be stated that it is 
a good plan always to select a reel of 
the exact weight to balance the rod 
perfectly, so that the rod does not feel 
top-heavy. 

Expert anglers will advise without 
qualification an English water-proofed 
silk Hne for dry-fly fishing. It may, 
perhaps, hurt an American's pride to 
feel compelled to admit that while 
nothing can equal the best American- 
made split-bamboo rods, there has 
not as yet been produced a fly-line in 
[301 



Lines Dressed in a Vacuum 

this country that can compare with the 
best EngHsh product. These Hues are 
expensive, but well worth the money 
they cost. Some anglers who would 
like to possess an English line feel 
that they cannot afford it; yet they 
can afford to go on expensive fishing 
trips. My advice would be to get the 
line, and to pay for it, if necessary, by 
reducing the duration of a fishing trip 
by one day. The line, having thus 
been paid for, will furnish pleasure for 
many other trips to come. 

The English fly-lines are water- 
proofed in a vacuum, so that the 
"dressing" may permeate every fibre 
of the silk. Then they are rubbed 
down, and afterward dressed again. 
Just how many times this operation 
is repeated depends upon the make 
and quality of the line. The completed 
product is a Une of great beauty, 

[31] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

smoothness, and flexibility, and the an- 
gler who has not used one has a fresh 
pleasure before him in fly-casting. As 
to the size of the line, the same thing 
that was said of "weight for length" 
in rods may be said of lines, changing 
the expression to "weight for size." 
In a line it is the weight that counts; 
and lines of different makes designated 
by the letters D, E, or F, vary both in 
size and in weight. It is probable, 
however, that the beginner in dry-fly 
fishing will be perfectly safe if he buys 
an E line, though I often use with much 
pleasure the heavier D line. Some may 
look upon a trout line of this size as 
suitable only for tournament work, 
and be inclined to criticise its use on 
the streams. They may be right. 
But if the reader will bear with me for 
a moment I think that the proposition 
will seem more reasonable to him: In 

[32] 



The Line Must Fit the Rod 

the first place, the author does not be- 
Heve in "far-off" casting, excepting 
when absolutely necessary. The D line 
tapers gradually for from fifteen to 
eighteen feet from its largest diameter 
to a very fine diameter at the end; to 
this is attached a nine-foot leader, so 
that before one begins to use the thick- 
est length of the line he already has 
from twenty-four to twenty-seven feet 
of finer line and leader out. Then on his 
long casts he begins to avail himself 
of the driving power of the heaviest 
part of the line. Perhaps, however, 
it will be more sensible for the beginner 
to buy an E line, but by all means it 
should be tapered. And remember that 
the line must be neither too heavy nor 
too light for the rod. It should, in 
other words, '*fit" the rod exactly. 

Next in importance comes the leader. 
There are various opinions as to 

[33] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

whether this necessary article should 
be tapered or not, and also as to the 
exact length that should be used. The 
beginner may study all these things 
out on the streams, and be guided both 
by his own experience and that of ex- 
pert anglers whom he may meet. It 
is safe to say that a large majority of 
dry-fly anglers both in England and 
America use a tapered leader nine feet 
long, and dry-fly leaders are commonly 
listed in this way in nearly all cata- 
logues. It is true that a long, light 
leader is difficult to manage against a 
strong head-wind, and in these weather 
conditions a leader of six feet might 
be better. The conventional dry-fly 
leader is tapered, and is rather coarse 
at the line end, tapering down from 
fine drawn gut to the finest undrawn at 
the end to which the fly is tied. Per- 
sonally I prefer the fine undrawn gut 

[34] 



English and American Flies 

ends or points to the drawn gut for 
general fishing. 

It is generally a pleasure to an Amer- 
ican writer to do all American products 
full justice, and not to advocate the 
purchase abroad of things that are 
made in this country of equal quality. 
I have unhesitatingly advised my 
readers to buy English lines, but I 
am in much doubt as to what to say 
about the purchase of flies. Of course, 
England is the home — the birthplace, 
so to speak — of the floating fly, and 
its use in this country has been so lim- 
ited that American fly-tiers have not 
had suflScient encouragement to make 
efforts to put upon the market a prod- 
uct that can compete in quality with 
the English floating insect, or to at- 
tempt to tie flies in imitation of in- 
sects found upon American streams. 
So personally, I think that our most 

[35] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

expert dry-fly fishermen generally use 
flies of English make. There has been 
much more interest in the dry-fly in 
this country recently than ever before, 
and some of our dealers have imported 
English dry-flies of the best quality, 
and have put them on the market at 
reasonable prices. They should be 
encouraged in this good work. As to 
the flies themselves, it has already been 
made plain that they are "tied dry"; 
that is, so that they will float. It is 
therefore necessary that the bodies of 
dry-flies shall be made of materials that 
will float readily, and that will not be- 
come water-soaked easily. There are 
certain objections to the use of silk, as 
most of it changes color when wet, and 
the "dubbing" commonly used for the 
bodies of wet flies, becomes quickly 
water-soaked and the fly consequently 
loses its buoyancy; so that now Mr. 

[36] 



Fly-Dressing Materials 

Halford recommends quill, horse-hair, 
and Rofia grass for dressing the bodies 
of floating flies. This, however, is a sub- 
ject that properly belongs to the fly- 
dressers' art and need not be enlarged 
upon in a book of instruction in the use 
of the fly. 



[37] 



CHAPTER IV 



Showing that Americans May Use 
the Dry-Fly, Though There is No 
American Fly-Fisher's Ento- 
mology 



WHILE perhaps American an- 
glers as a rule have suffered 
no particular inconvenience 
from being compelled to use English 
patterns, yet who would not feel much 
more pride if Americans were able to 
procure flies of the highest class tied 
in imitation of the insects found upon 
our own streams? But there is one ob- 
stacle that seems to make this impos- 
sible at present. In 1836, seventy-six 
years ago, Mr. Alfred Ronalds gave to 
the English angling world a very com- 
plete entomology, containing the names 

[38] 



Nature Imitated Accurately 

of forty-six flies commonly found upon 
the English streams, which formed a 
large part of the insect food of their 
trout. Very careful drawings of these 
insects were made, and in the book 
the plates were hand-colored to re- 
semble the natural fly in every partic- 
ular. Side by side with the natural 
insects were plates of the imitation 
flies, also hand-colored. In 1886, Mr. 
Halford published one of his celebrated 
works, ''Floating Flies and How to 
Dress Them," and in this book were 
shown ninety artificial patterns, all 
dressed from the natural insects, and 
in the de luxe edition hand-colored. 
In 1897, Mr. Halford gave to anglers 
another work, his "Dry -Fly Ento- 
mology," containing one hundred pat- 
terns. The great accuracy aimed at 
by Mr. Halford in all his entomological 
studies may be understood when we 

[39] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

learn that he in no case was satisfied 
that he had the correct type of any in- 
sect until he had secured at least two 
hundred specimens of that insect, all 
taken from the water and none from 
the air. In America it is doubtless 
true that many anglers have examined 
carefully various insects they have 
seen on our trout streams, but no one 
apparently has carried his investiga- 
tions so far as to make them of prac- 
tical value to a large number of his 
fellow anglers. 

But still this situation does not make 
the successful use of the dry-fly on 
American streams impossible or even 
inadvisable. The favorite English- 
made floating flies are imitations of 
the Ephemeridse, and there seems to 
be little doubt that many of the duns 
found upon the streams of England also 
exist on American waters. Whether 

[40] 



A Word About Size of Fly 

English dry-flies, tied to resemble Eng- 
lish insects, imitate exactly in all points 
similar insects common to American 
streams is a mooted question, owing 
to the fact that we have no American 
authority; but there is little question 
that they resemble them closely in im- 
portant particulars, such as size, shape, 
and general color. In shape, the duns 
are precisely similar. One of the most 
important things is action, by which 
is meant that a dry-fly shall float down 
exactly as a living insect would float, 
and that depends entirely upon the 
skill of the angler and not upon the 
make of the fly. 

It is perhaps worthy of mention that 
the majority of American dry-fly an- 
glers have a belief that the use of a 
slightly larger fly than is used in Eng- 
land, tied on a larger hook, is advisable 
on our streams. Mr. Dewar, the Eng- 

[41] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

lish writer, advises the use of as large 
a hook as possible even on English 
streams, meaning, of course, a hook 
that is not too large to prevent at 
least an approximate resemblance to 
the live insect. A larger hook is cer- 
tainly more sure to engage itself in 
the fish's mouth than one of the little 
000, 00, or hooks so commonly used 
by British anglers. It is held by Mr. 
LaBranche and other American anglers 
that it is much more difficult to keep 
very small flies in a " floating condition " 
than flies somewhat larger. In Eng- 
land, where they fish the rise almost 
exclusively, the fly is on the water 
but infrequently, and has plenty of 
opportunity to dry. But we fish " likely 
spots," and the fly is floating a large 
part of the time. Hence the difficulty 
of keeping the small fly long in a suffi- 
ciently dry condition to float properly. 

[42] 



An Aid to Floatahility 

To increase the floating power of the 
dry-fly it is customary to "paraffin" 
the flies from time to time. For this 
purpose it is well for the angler to carry 
with him on the stream a small bottle 
of paraffin oil, or one of the several 
preparations made especially for this 
purpose. It will also pay to buy a 
small ''dry-fly oiler" made to hold this 
oil when on the streams. After tying 
the fly to the leader, the angler should 
put a small quantity of oil on the 
hackles and on the body of the fly. A 
rag, an old handkerchief, or a folded 
piece of blotting-paper, is used with 
which to "squeeze out" the superflu- 
ous oil. 

The majority of dry-fly anglers also 
own a small tin of deer fat. With it 
they grease their line occasionally, or 
at least from ten to thirty feet of it. 
The deer fat is best put on the line 
[43] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

with the thumb and forefinger of one 
hand, and the fine is then carefully 
rubbed down with a soft rag to re- 
move the superfluous fat. The pur- 
pose of using deer fat is to make the 
line float more readily. It also pre- 
serves the line and keeps it soft and 
flexible. 

In the series of magazine articles al- 
ready referred to, entitled "Practical 
Dry-Fly Fishing for Beginners," the 
author explained just what he had in 
mind when he used the word ''be- 
ginner"; and as this book is intended 
merely to carry out the idea that in- 
spired his first writings on the subject, 
namely, to lend a helping hand to the 
dry-fly beginner, it may not be out of 
place to close this chapter with a quo- 
tation from that article: 

While it has been made plain that these words 
are written for the beginner only, yet I hope that 

[44] 



A Dry -Fly Beginner Defined 

the exact type of beginner that I have in mind will 
be equally well understood; he is not the tyro who 
has never as yet had the pleasure of using a fly-rod, 
or the man who has no knowledge of trout streams 
or the habits of trout. I assume that those who 
have asked me to write these instructions are al- 
ready good anglers. It is my hope that this article 
will be of assistance to those who are fly-fishermen, 
but who have not as yet tasted the pleasures of 
luring the trout with the dry-fly. It is not difficult 
to believe that the step from the expert wet fly fish- 
erman to the dry-fly expert is a comparatively short 
one, and easily accomplished by one willing to de- 
vote some thought to the subject, and some time to 
practising on the streams. In this way it is prob- 
able that all our best American dry-fly anglers have 
become experts. They have first been expert wet 
fly anglers; then their attention has been drawn to 
the dry-fly; they have received a few " points" from 
friends — enough to start with; they have practised 
on the streams, perhaps somewhat crudely at first; 
they have read much of the very fine literature 
written in England upon the subject; they have 
been quick to understand the methods used by our 
English cousins; they have adapted and changed 
the English ideas to meet the conditions upon our 
streams, and in a comparatively short time they have 
become successively our pioneers and our experts 
in dry-fly angling. 



[45] 



CHAPTER V 

Up-Stream Fishing, Methods of 
Casting, and Some Condensed 
Rules for Using the Floating Fly 

IT has already been noticed, possi- 
bly, what a part naturalness plays 
in dry-fly fishing; we have learned 
that the fly is an exact imitation of the 
natural insect; it must be presented 
to the trout in an absolutely natural 
manner, and when the fly is on the 
water it must have a natural motion. 
We do not merely hope that by some 
lucky chance the trout may take the 
feathered lure for "something good to 
eat" without knowing exactly the nat- 
ure of the food presented; the trout 
must see that the fly is an insect upon 
which it has fed many times before; 

[46] 



By All Means, Fish Up-Stream 

it must light on the water as it has 
seen thousands of other insects Hght; 
it must float down the stream in pre- 
cisely the same manner that it has 
been accustomed all its life to see other 
insects float with the current. In 
other words, the very naturalness of 
the entire game must deceive the trout 
completely. 

The dry-fly angler must fish up- 
stream, or up and across stream, and 
the beginner will make no mistake in 
following this advice bhndly without 
being influenced by the arguments pro 
and con by some wet fly fishermen as 
to whether it is better to fish up-stream 
or down. True it is not always de- 
sirable that you cast directly ahead of 
you on the stream, so that you may 
risk "lining the fish" as it lies with its 
head up-stream. By this is meant cast- 
ing the fly above the trout so that the 

[47] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

leader falls directly over its head and 
body, thus placing the fly, the head 
and tail of the fish, and the angler in a 
straight Hne. Usually trout are *'gut 
shy." It is obvious that the fish may 
get a good view of the leader before it 
sees the fly, or that it may see the fly 
and leader simultaneously. 

Before taking our first trip to the 
stream, even at the risk of repetition, 
it may be well to recapitulate and 
bring together the principal rules of 
dry-fly fishing that have been already 
mentioned in a general way. (1) Use 
but one fly and that an imitation of a 
natural insect, and a fly that floats. 
(2) Cast this fly up-stream, at or slightly 
above a spot where you know there is 
a trout from having seen it rise, or a 
spot where your "fish sense" tells you 
that a trout may be. (3) Let the fly 
float down with no motion whatever 

14S] 



Some Rules, Briefly Stated 

except that naturally imparted by the 
current. (4) After the fly has floated 
well below the place where you think 
the trout may lie, lift it very gently 
from the water and prepare for the 
next cast. (5) Make at least three or 
four false casts in the air, both to dry 
your fly and to lengthen your line, and 
do not let the fly touch the water again 
until you see that it will strike the 
exact spot that you have picked out 
for it to land. (6) If you "bungle" 
your cast — that is, if the fly does not 
light on the right spot, or if it does 
not light properly, with wings nicely 
"cocked" in the air, do not imme- 
diately remove the fly from the water 
with a jerk; let it float down as if you 
had made the best cast possible, and 
then lift it out gently as before. By 
following this course you will lessen 
much the chances of frightening the 

[49] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

trout, which may take the fly at the 
next cast as if nothing out of the usual 
had happened. 

"Dry casts," or "false casts," play 
a most important part in dry-fly fish- 
ing, and are seldom used by fishermen 
who are not accustomed to this method 
of angling. In wet fly fishing it is 
customary to lift the fly or flies from 
the water, and after the back-cast to 
make immediately another forward 
cast, again placing the lure or lures on 
the water. But it is one of the cardi- 
nal principles of dry-fly fishing not to 
allow the fly to touch the water until 
it has reached the exact spot previously 
picked out by the angler. The line is 
always lengthened by false casts, or 
casts in the air, and the fly is not al- 
lowed to touch the surface of the 
stream until the angler sees that it 
will reach the desired position. The 

[50] 



False Casts to Dry the Fly 

dry-fly, in order to float readily, must 
always be kept as free from superflu- 
ous moisture as possible. Therefore, 
after each cast the fly must be driven 
through the air several times, and 
when the fly gets very wet, many 
times. As a rule three or four false 
casts will be suflacient to dry the fly; 
at other times, when for some reason 
the fly has become thoroughly soaked, 
twenty or thirty trips through the air 
may be necessary. 

In order to become a proficient fly- 
fisherman the angler must learn to 
use his left hand skilfully in manipu- 
lating the line. The reel is an abso- 
lute necessity for holding the line, and 
for taking it in when there is too much 
line out for convenience. But in re- 
trieving it, after a cast up-stream, the 
reel must not be depended upon, but 
the line must be stripped in with the 

[51] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

left hand (assuming that the angler 
holds the rod in his right hand). In 
other words, the line at practically all 
times should be grasped by the fingers 
of the left hand of the angler, while 
between the reel and the first guide of 
the rod it should pass under the first 
and second fingers of the right hand, 
and these fingers, pressing the line 
against the cork grip, are in a position 
to act as a brake which always con- 
trols and regulates the rendering of 
the line. 

Of the general methods of fly-cast- 
ing much has been written and much 
has been explained. And yet perfect 
casters are rarely to be seen on the 
streams. This is a pity, as ability to 
cast adds greatly to the pleasure of an- 
gling and is an art easily acquired. 
At times one casts all day, while the 
fish caught are few and far between. 

[52] 



Advice on Skilful Casting 

The unsuccessful angler has much more 
.satisfaction in feeling that his work has 
been skilfully performed than he 
would have if in doubt as to whether 
his lack of success had been due to a 
scarcity of feeding fish, or to a series 
of bungling performances on his part. 
To become a good caster is simple if 
one learns a few of the first principles 
of handling the rod and line. One of 
the greatest faults of anglers who have 
difiiculty in making accurate or long 
casts is that on the back cast they al- 
low the point of the rod to go entirely 
too far behind them. Some anghng 
writers — many, in fact — who under- 
take the task of teaching beginners, 
advise them to let the rod go back 
until it reaches an angle of forty-five 
degrees. To do so is a grievous fault. 
The rod should be stopped when it has 
barely passed the perpendicular. In 

[53 1 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

wet fly angling it is usually proper to 
remove the fly from the water with a, 
snap; the backward movement of the 
rod is stopped when slightly beyond 
a perpendicular position; there is a 
pause long enough to allow the line 
to straighten out behind, and then the 
forward cast is begun; not much 
strength is used, but the spring of the 
rod is allowed to do practically all the 
work. If the man who has not been 
able to cast well will practice along 
these lines, he will be astonished to 
find how far he will soon be able to 
place his fly, and how easily and ac- 
curately he can make any length of 
cast necessary in actual fishing. 

To cast the floating fly, first strip 
from the reel with the left hand a few 
feet of line. Work the rod backward 
and forward, holding the tip well up, 
and allow the fly to move back and 

[54] 



What the Rod Should Do 

forth in the air without touching the 
water. Meanwhile, keep stripping off 
hne until the desired length has been 
taken from the reel. But do not swing 
your rod violently as if you were try- 
ing to beat a carpet with it; let its 
movements be gentle and graceful. 
The wrist and spring of the rod should 
do all the work. Allow the tip to de- 
scribe only a small arc; that is, let it 
go only slightly beyond the perpen- 
dicular on either the forward or the 
back cast. Gentle movements of the 
rod in the air are far less liable to alarm 
the trout than quick, violent motions. 
Before the series of false casts has been 
begun the angler is supposed to have 
picked out some particular spot on the 
w ater where he thinks there is a fish, 
and therefore desires to place his fly. 
He keeps his eyes on the fly as it goes 
through the air, and when he sees that 

[55] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

there is a sufficient length of hne out 
he lets the imitation insect fall gently 
upon the water. Then he allows the 
fly to float wherever the current takes 
it. If the lure has fallen as it should 
fall, it sits on the water, with its little 
wings nicely "cocked," or upright in the 
air, and it looks for all the world like a 
natural member of the Ephemeridse 
family off for a little sight-seeing trip. 
As the fly is coming down-stream and 
toward the angler, it is necessary to 
strip in the slack line, but this should 
be done carefully, for no unnatural 
motion must be imparted to the in- 
sect, or a trout seeing it will look upon 
it with a mind full of suspicion. 

While the theory of making a fly 
light gently upon the water has been 
told many times, yet, as this book may 
fall into the hands of some beginners 
who do not know how to do it, it may 

[56] 



Making a Fly Light Gently 

be well to repeat the instructions here : 
Do not cast for the spot on the water 
where you desire the fly to fall, but at 
a point in the air a few feet above this 
spot. This is a useful thing to know, 
as dry-flies must not hit the water 
with a splash. 

And now, if your first cast has not 
been successful in every way — if the 
fly has fallen on its side instead of 
"cocked" — it may be a consolation to 
the beginner to know that the most 
expert anglers cannot always control 
the position that the fly will assume 
when it reaches the water; but the ex- 
pert will not lose patience and retrieve 
the fly too quickly, for he has had too 
much experience to alarm the trout 
unnecessarily. 



[57] 



CHAPTER VI I 

.^ 1 

Tying an Eyed-Fly to a Leader, \ 
and Some Practice on a Hypo- ( 
thetical Pool \ 



THERE are still many technical 
and tactical points that properly 
might be discussed before we 
accompany the novice to the stream to 
cast his first dry-fly, but perhaps after 
having read the preceding pages, devot- 
ed largely to a description of methods 
used in handling the fly, the beginner 
may think that the information already 
gained is sufficient to warrant at least 
some preliminary practice on the stream. 
As flies tied to gut have been largely 
used by American fly-fishermen, and 
as nearly all floating flies are tied on 
eyed-hooks, I have met many anglers 

[58 1 



Tying an Eyed-Fly to Gut 

who have professed entire ignorance of 
the way, or ways, of attaching eyed- 
flies to leaders. There are various 
methods of doing this, and they are all 
extremely simple when once learned. 
Several knots that are efficacious may 
be found illustrated in many angling 
books and tackle catalogues. After 
having lost several large fish in my 
earliest experiences with eyed-hooks, 
I then and there became prejudiced 
against some of the knots used by an- 
glers in favor of what is known as 
Major Turle's knot. At times I have 
been criticised for using this, on the 
ground that it is not as simple as some 
others; but in the case of minor de- 
tails, each angler is apt to think that 
his own way of doing things is the 
best, and after some criticisms from 
experts for whose opinions on most 
matters relating to the dry-fly I have 

[59] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

much respect, I have found satisfac- 
tion in the fact that the knot I have 
used for several years is that recom- 
mended by Mr. Halford and many 
other authorities. Though other knots, 
when properly tied, doubtless hold as 
well as Major Turle's, yet, having once 
tied a fly to a leader with the Turle 
knot, I have a feeling that the fly is 
there to stay until taken off or until 
the gut breaks. It seems almost un- 
necessary to caution the reader not 
to attempt to tie a fly to a leader until 
the gut is thoroughly soaked, but to 
make assurance doubly sure I will do 
so. The Turle knot is made as fol- 
lows: 

The end of the gut (there is no loop 
on the fly end) is put through the eye 
of the fly, and an ordinary slipknot 
tied, as in Fig. 1. The loop is then 
carefully pushed over the bend of the 

[60] 



How tJie Turle Knot Is Tied 

hook and over the wings, clearing both 
wings and hackles, as in Figs. 2 and 3. 
It is then pulled tight as in Fig. 4. It 




Fig. 1 




Fig. 3 





will be seen that the knot does not go 
through the eye of the fly, while the 
loop is pulled tight between the head 
of the fly and the eye of the hook. 
Last, cut off the loose end, E (Fig. 4.) 
We have already learned that dry-fly 

[61] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

fishing was originally invented in Eng- 
land for use on slow, clear, placid 
streams, and as comparatively smooth 
water is often considered more or less 
necessary to the successful floating of 
the fly, our first practice will be made 
upon a pool. For the sake of simplicity 
we will say that the pool is of more or 
less regular shape, some twenty feet 
long, and in the neighborhood of ten 
feet wide; also for our purpose we will 
assume that it is all good trout water, 
from head to tail and from bank to 
bank. While the surface of the water 
is not ruffled, yet there is a fairly good 
current, slightly swifter at the centre 
of the stream than near the banks. We 
are supposed to have already fished the 
waters below the tail of the pool, so 
we need pay no attention to them now. 
We are wading, and we take our 
stand a few feet below the pool, a 

[62] 



The First Cast on a Pool 

short distance from the left bank, or, 
as we are fishing up-stream, from the 
bank at our right. It is a good rule 
to cover carefully all promising water, 
and, that we may not disturb any trout 
in good water before we fish it, our 
first cast is over the water nearest to 
us. Stripping some line from the reel 
with our left hand, we make a few 
casts in the air to lengthen the line 
so that the fly may be able to reach 
our objective point, which in this case 
— our first cast — is near the bank at 
our right, and from three to five feet 
above the tail of the pool. The fly 
lights gently and is allowed to float 
with the current until it reaches the 
end of the pool. Meanwhile, as the 
fly comes toward us, we are stripping 
in the slack line with our left hand, 
but so deliberately and gently that we 
do not in any case "drag" the fly. 

[63] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

The "drag" is most fatal to the suc- 
cess of the dry-fly angler, and, with 
the methods of overcoming it, will be 
discussed at some length in another 
chapter. We have already discovered 
that one of the basic principles of dry- 
fly fishing is the natural motion of the 
insect on the surface of the stream, and 
if this motion, or action of the fly, is 
disturbed by interfering causes, one 
might as well give up hope of tak- 
ing a fish until another cast has been 
made. 

When ready to make the second 
cast in our pool, draw in your mind's 
eye an imaginary line, beginning at the 
spot where you made your first cast, 
straight across the pool to the other 
bank. Again make the necessary num- 
ber of false casts, both to dry the fly 
and to lengthen the line, and then let 
the fly drop on the imaginary line, but 

[64] 



Imaginary Lines on a Pool 

this time about a foot to the left of 
your first cast. Go through the same 
operations of allowing the fly to float 
down to the foot of the pool, lifting the 
fly from the water, making your false 
casts in the air, and let the third cast 
be about a foot to the left of the sec- 
ond cast, and on the same imaginary 
line running across the pool, and re- 
peat these operations until your fly 
has reached the opposite bank. Then 
lengthen the line still further (and you 
can now also probably advance care- 
fully a step or two up-stream) and let 
the next cast be near the bank at the 
right, but a few feet above the spot 
where the first cast was made. Draw 
another imaginary line across the 
stream parallel with the first one, 
from the point where the fly dropped 
on the water on this cast. Allow the 
fly to float down, this time not neces- 

[65] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

sarily to the foot of the pool, but well 
below the imaginary line across which 
you made the first series of casts; in 
other words, do not remove the fly 
until it has reached water that has 
been already fished. Continue across 
and up the pool in this way until all 
the water has been entirely covered. 
You can readily see that the fly has 
floated over nearly every square foot 
of the pool, and that the casts have 
been so made that no unfished water 
has been disturbed. 

This is only a general scheme for 
fishing a pool. It must be understood 
that where distances in feet are given 
it is only to illustrate a point, as the 
distances between casts will depend 
largely upon circumstances and will 
be determined by our own judgment. 
Apparently I have allowed for only one 
cast at each good spot. But in practice 

[66] 



Advantages of Many Casts 

this by no means follows. While in 
England, where many purists cast only 
at rising trout, not more than two or 
three casts are usually made at any 
one fish; yet generally the American 
dry-fly angler has adopted entirely dif- 
ferent rules. Some of our experts, 
when they see a spot where they feel 
sure that a good trout may be feeding, 
cast in the same place over and over 
again. There are well authenticated 
cases where a trout has apparently 
paid no attention to a dry-fly until 
twenty or thirty casts have been made, 
and then has come for it with a rush. 

Though I know that this doctrine is 
diametrically opposed to the theories 
of some English experts who have 
practised the art of dry-fly fishing on 
the English chalk streams for thirty or 
forty years, or even more, yet at the 
present time it would be impossible to 

[67] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

convince many American anglers that 
it is not advisable on our streams to 
cast over promising water until one is 
well satisfied that the trout supposed 
to be there is beyond hope of being 
lured to the surface at that particular 
time. One of my acquaintances, who 
had been a successful dry-fly fisherman 
for more than a quarter of a century, 
caught his first large trout with the 
dry-fly, after a day of discouragement, 
on the thirty-sixth cast, all the casts 
being made at one spot in the pool; 
and he met with this first success only 
after having been compelled by Mr. 
LaBranche, who was standing by his 
side, to cast over this trout until he 
got it. 

In the author's make-up there may 
be something akin to obstinacy that 
often makes him linger long below a 
particularly alluring stretch of water, 

[68] 



Optimism on the Stream 

though the looked-for rises come not; 
or the eompeUing force may be a very 
persistent kind of hopefulness, or an 
enlarged optimism that exhibits itself 
in a marked degree when he is casting 
a fly in which he thoroughly believes. 
Sometimes the resulting persistence is 
rewarded, as in the following case: 
On the Willowemoc one day I came 
to a most enticing little run, the deep 
water being only about two or three 
feet wide and four or five feet in depth, 
flowing swiftly but smoothly along the 
edge of an elongated brush heap close 
to the bank. Being in a persistent 
and optimistic mood, and beheving 
that there must be a good trout in 
such a delightful stretch of water, I 
determined to remain there until the 
fish had been brought around to my 
way of thinking. For half an hour I 
floated fly after fly over its supposed 

[69] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

feeding place, resting the water from 
time to time, and then sat down to 
think it over, deciding after a few more 
casts to go on up-stream. In what I 
had decided would be the final en- 
deavor, probably from fifteen to twenty 
casts had been made, when I was re- 
warded by the rise of a trout of just 
about the size that I had imagined 
must be lurking in such a splendid run. 
Mr. H. G. McClelland, the author of a 
bright little English work on artificial 
flies, advances the theory that flies may 
be "cast and recast so as to create the 
idea that flies of this sort are passing 
over the fish in large numbers." While 
the author thoroughly believes in the 
idea of floating a fly many times over 
a spot where the angler is convinced 
that a good trout lies, yet it should be 
remembered that the utmost degree of 
skill must be shown to make every cast 

[70] 



Skill vs. Trout Cunning 

so perfect that not even twenty or 
thirty casts at the same spot will 
arouse the suspicions of the cunning 
trout. 



171 



I CHAPTER VII I 

j . ^^ 1 

I In which the Beginner Visits a ( 
( Real Pool from which a Few ? 
j Trout Are Taken \ 



THE first casts of our beginner, 
accompanied by the author, 
have been made on an im- 
aginary pool; and from its description 
it might be properly considered a 
purely mathematical or hypothetical 
pool, almost rectangular in shape. 
There is a little real pool, on a stream 
in Sullivan County, which frequently 
occupies a place in the author's 
thoughts, because he first cast a fly 
on its placid surface when he was rap- 
idly reaching the end of the transi- 
tion period marking the parting of the 
ways between the wet fly angler and 
[72 1 



Wet Flies on Dry-Fly Water 

the enthusiastic devotee of the float- 
ing fly. It is interesting, also, as hav- 
ing furnished a notable example of the 
great efficacy of the dry-fly at a time 
when the sunken lure had proved en- 
tirely unavailing. 

Toward the end of a May afternoon, 
I approached a very beautiful pool, 
though a small one, and when less than 
a hundred yards below it, saw another 
angler, a wet fly fisherman, nearing it 
from above; much to my disappoint- 
ment, I must confess, as it was typical 
dry-fly water. I had not been partic- 
ularly successful for some time, and 
had approached this pool with much 
eagerness. There was nothing for me 
to do, under the circumstances, but to 
sit on a large rock below the pool and 
watch the work of the stranger, and 
after seeing him place his flies several 
times I judged him to be no bungler 

[73] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

in his favorite method of fishing. This 
opinion was confirmed later when I 
learned that he had the reputation of 
being an expert, and had fished this 
particular stream for years. After he 
had covered the pool thoroughly, he 
sat beside me and told the story of his 
day's work. He had fished since 5.30 
A.M., and up to this time — about 
5.30 p. M. — had caught only two trout, 
neither of them much above the legal 
limit; in the pretty pool, lying almost 
at our feet, he had not had a rise. The 
water was extremely low, and for sev- 
eral feet on the right-hand side of the 
pool (properly the left-hand bank, but 
on the right hand to one fishing up- 
stream) large areas of the bed of the 
stream were entirely bare. There was 
left in the centre and on the left-hand 
side a run of fairly deep water, only a 
few feet in width. After comparing 
[74] 



The Dry-Fly's Allurements 

notes with the down-stream angler, the 
author picked up his rod and ap- 
proached the foot of the pool to see 
if the dry-fly might not prove more 
alluring to some of the trout that any 
fisherman would naturally suppose 
must live in such a pretty pool. At 
the head of the pool the stream came 
tumbhng down in the form of a minia- 
ture water-fall through a narrow space 
between rocks. The accompanying 
diagram (Fig 5) gives a fair idea of 
this pool. In the shaded portions be- 
tween the dotted lines and the banks 
the water was shallow, the fishable part 
of the pool being the channel between 
the dotted lines. 

The method of fishing such a pool 
has been outlined in the description of 
our hypothetical pool, and the various 
casts are indicated in the diagram by 
the numerous letters X, each X indi- 

[75] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

eating a spot where the fly was placed. 
The places indicated by the letters 0, 
show the various positions taken by 
the angler as he moved up-stream. 
The first three casts were at the very 
beginning of the good water, and a rise 
was hardly expected. These might 
w^ell be called preliminary casts. But 
hope began to rise in the angler's breast 
as the second series of casts was begun; 
and with reason, for as the fly touched 
the water at the second cast of this 
series (indicated by ^) , a rainbow trout 
of about ten inches rose to the fly and 
missed. The pool was then covered 
carefully by the series of casts shown 
in the diagram, and there was not an- 
other sign of a fish until the fly had 
reached the position B, where a twelve- 
inch brown trout was hooked, and be- 
fore it had recovered from its aston- 
ishment had been rapidly and forcibly 

[76] 



Method of Fishing a Pool 

led down to the water below the rock 
M; for the angler naturally argued 




Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

that if there was a twelve-inch fish at 
By there might be a better one at the 
head of the pool, and it was advisable 
to "play" the fish hooked as far away 
from the upper part of the pool as pos- 
sible. One side of the rock indicated 
by the letter N sloped gradually down 
to the surface of the stream. The fly 
was next cast upon the shelving side 
of this rock and allowed to slide down- 
ward until it fell from the rock to 
the surface of the water, lighting most 
gently, and with exactly the same ac- 
tion that a natural insect would have 
had in similar circumstances. As soon 
as it touched the surface of the stream 
at C, a brown trout of fourteen inches 
took the fly with a rush. The net re- 
sults of a few minutes' fishing in this 
little pool were two trout landed and 
one missed. 

It is perhaps unnecessary to add 

[78] 



A Convert to the Dry-Fly 

that the wet fly angler, who had been 
an interested spectator, then and there 
became an enthusiast over the floating 
lure, and departed on his journey down- 
stream the happy possessor of a dozen 
or two of the best English floating 
flies. 



[79] 



CHAPTER VIII I 

How the Dry-fly May Be Used I 

on Rough Waters as Well as j 

on Placid Pools \ 



EVEN in fishing the httle pool 
that we have just left we have 
violated the principles of some 
of the English dry-fly purists, and now 
that we are approaching swifter and 
rougher water to fish it with the dry- 
fiy, we are about to make a still more 
radical departure from the English 
purist's methods. But, however much 
the British dry-fly fisherman might 
protest from a distance that he would 
not in any circumstances imitate 
American anglers in putting the float- 
ing fly to such uses, yet I am almost 
convinced that if he were to cast a fly 

[80] 



The Typical Chalk Stream 

upon some of our American streams he 
would soon give up his idea of fishing 
only the rise, and would begin to fish 
the stream. 

A study of many pictures of the 
well-known Enghsh chalk streams leads 
me to beheve that it is the character 
of the streams themselves that makes 
his method feasible and also natural. 
To make a mental picture of a typical 
English chalk stream, recall in your 
mind one of our little country brooks, 
winding gently through a flat meadow, 
and then enlarge it several times. 
Many photographs of Enghsh chalk 
streams show long, broad stretches of 
smooth water. Within the purist's vi- 
sion, as he stands upon the bank scan- 
ning carefully the stream, are some- 
times many hundreds of feet of this 
placid water, and to one who has 
studied photographs of these streams, 

[81] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

without having seen the streams them- 
selves, one stretch of water looks about 
as good as another from an angler's 
stand-point, though of course they, too, 
have their particularly favorable spots. 
In contrast with these wide, smooth 
chalk streams, imagine yourself on the 
bank of a typical Sullivan County trout 
stream and note the difference in the 
general conditions. It is true that at 
intervals there are long, smooth pools. 
But as the angler stands in almost any 
position on one of these streams, what 
appears before him as he looks up over 
the stream? Long stretches of swift 
water tumbling over a rocky bed, with 
here and there little surfaces of smooth 
water, above, below, or between rows 
of rocks, and at rather rare intervals a 
good pool. If one stationed himself 
on the banks of a stream like this, de- 
termined not to wet his line until he 

[82] 



Waiting Long for a Rise 

had seen a rise, how long would he be 
compelled to wait before making his 
first cast? Perhaps not more than a 
minute, because rises sometimes occur. 
But, as a rule, the delay would be long 
and tedious. If a purist had stationed 
himself below the little pool described 
in the last chapter to wait for a rise 
at that spot, he would have had to 
depend upon this bit of water alone for 
the rise, for the pool was so situated 
that there was no other part of the 
stream within the vision of the waiting 
angler where there would be any like- 
lihood of his seeing a rising fish. If 
the English purist had to depend en- 
tirely upon such water for his sport, 
would he not adopt our American 
method of fishing the stream rather 
than waiting for the rising fish.^ I am 
inclined to think so. 

It also seems to the author that the 

[83 1 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

English dry-fly angler's custom of fish- 
ing smooth water almost exclusively is 
responsible for the belief, extensively 
held, that the floating fly is not suit- 
able for our American streams. But 
suppose that conditions were suddenly 
changed; imagine for a moment that 
the English chalk streams ceased to 
exist in their present form, and were 
replaced by the more turbulent Ameri- 
can streams, presenting rare opportuni- 
ties of seeing a rising fish. Would the 
English purist give up his favorite 
sport, or pass many days in looking for 
a rise that came not? Or would he 
make a study of the parts of the stream 
most likely to be the feeding places of 
trout, and begin casting over them, 
taking a chance of enticing a fish to 
his fly, though he had not previously 
seen a rise? 

Granting, then, that it is not only 

[84] 



Fishing the Rough Waters 
entirely proper, but advisable, for the 
American angler to fish the stream in- 
stead of fishing the rise, the proposi- 
tion may be advanced confidently that 
the dry-fly is almost as tempting in lur- 
ing trout from more or less swift, rough 
water, as it is in taking them from the 
pools. All who have been on trout 
streams can remember many places 
where there are barriers formed by a 
row or group of rocks in the centre of 
the stream, the tops of some of them 
rising above the surface, others entirely 
covered. The swift water comes rush- 
ing down upon one of these barriers, 
over the rocks, between them, and 
around them. Above and below the 
rocks are splendid lurking places for 
feeding fish. We approach one of these 
groups of rocks carefully from down- 
stream, and cast our fly at one side of 
the rocks and below them, allowing it 

[85] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

to float down as far as advisable before 
making another east. One cast follows 
another across the stream until we have 
covered all the good water below the 
rocks. Whether successful or not in 
taking a fish from this water, we now 
begin casting about two or three feet 
above the rocks, first to the left of them, 
then directly above them, and then to 
the right of them, letting our fly float 
down past the rocks before lifting it 
from the water, endeavoring to tempt 
any trout that may be watching for 
food from any of these strongholds. 

Now a short distance above these 
rocks there is a stretch of very swift 
water, more or less rough. We know 
that at certain times such water is the 
delight of the wet fly angler, but how 
about the dry-fly man? Let us wait 
and see. We are still near the right 
bank of the stream (the left as we look 

[86 1 



A Dry-Fly Changes Its Role 

up-stream), and so we first let our fly 
drop on this swift water, near the bank 
to our left. Bing! A fine rainbow 
trout rose at the first cast, but we 
missed it, either because we failed to 
see the quick flash of the fish under 
water, or because we did not strike 
quickly enough. For the dry-fly — 
what became of it? When it touched 
the surface it did its best to play its 
dignified part of a dry-fly, it skipped 
along over the turbulent stream for a 
moment, but the water was too rough 
and strong for it to keep afloat, it was 
sucked under, and, therefore, became 
the wet fly that we have been accus- 
tomed to use. Not exactly the same, 
perhaps, for this dry-fly, though now 
wet and sunken, still retains its char- 
acter as an imitation of a natural insect. 
Having had some success with our very 
first cast in swift water, we will continue 

[87] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

to fish every inch of these rapids, letting 
the fly go where it Hsteth, playing the 
part of the wet fly or the dry-fly, but 
always resembling the living insect 
which it so closely imitates. 

It is somewhat astonishing at times 
to see over what rough water a dry- 
fly can float successfully. The inequal- 
ities of the surface of a stream, of 
course, depend upon the roughness of 
the bottom. Sometimes the water 
rushes down with its surface broken 
into what appear to be small waves, 
more or less regular in shape. It is a 
pretty sight to watch a dry-fly coming 
down over such water, apparently al- 
most skipping from wave to wave; and 
the action of the fly at this time seems 
to be tremendously enticing to any fish 
that may see it. 

If the angler uses his powers of ob- 
servation he will notice that in almost 

[88] 



Casting on Glassy Glides 

all stretches of rough water, however 
swift and turbulent, there are little 
smooth spots that might be properly 
called glassy glides.* Cast your fly at 
the top of one of these glides, and it 
will float perfectly until it is seized by 
a trout or reaches the turbulent water. 
While the fly will often float suc- 
cessfully over a rough surface, yet, if 
it is sucked under, the angler is cer- 
tainly in no worse position than the 
user of the sunken fly under his very 
best conditions. After having been 
through these swift waters, the fly may 
have a bedraggled appearance, and 
look like anything but the natty in- 
sect, with wings erect, that it was when 
first taken from the fly box. The an- 
gler should take an old handkerchief, or 

* This idea of fishing these glassy glides with a 
dry-fly appeared in an article written in 1911 by Mr. 
Walter McGuckin, one of New York's best dry-fly 
anglers. 

[89] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

rag, and squeeze the fly in its folds to 
get out some of the water that it has 
absorbed, and then, putting it close 
to his mouth, blow into its feathers 
and hackles. This will restore to the 
hackles their old "fluffy" appearance. 

Next, he should straighten out the 
wings and coax them into shape with 
the fingers, finally oiling the fly again 
when approaching smooth water. 

One of the beauties of fishing the 
rough stretches is the very near ap- 
proach to the fish that may be made 
by the careful angler, and the advan- 
tages and possibilities of close fishing 
will form the subject of a little talk 
in a subsequent chapter. 



[90] 



CHAPTER IX 

That Cruel Thing, the "Drag;' 
and How Its Evil Effects May 
Be Overcome 



HAVING learned the great part 
that naturalness plays in dry- 
fly angling, and that the action 
of the fly upon the water must resem- 
ble in all ways the movements of a 
live insect similarly placed, we now 
come, in the regular course of events, 
to that bane of the dry-fly fisherman, 
the "drag." It is easy to say that 
the fly must at all times float down- 
stream naturally with no other motion 
than that imparted by the current; but, 
while nothing impedes the life-like 
action of the living insect, we cannot 
overlook the fact that the little imi- 

[91] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

tation fly labors under the disadvan- 
tage of having attached to it leader 
and line, and that these impediments 
to its freedom of movement often tax 
to the utmost the skill of the angler. 

" But what a cruel thing is that which 
has been well named the *drag,'" ex- 
claims Mr. Dewar. "Trout do not 
like even natural insects to play pranks 
on the water," he says. "The drag 
is one of the greatest protections in 
rather fast running streams that Nat- 
ure affords the trout against the dry- 
fly fishermen." 

Imagine for a moment a little live 
dun on the surface of a rapidly flowing 
stream. It is tiny, delicate in con- 
struction, as light as a piece of thistle- 
down, and to resist even the weakest 
current is as powerless as a small child 
would be if thrown into the Niagara 
whirlpool. It must go wherever the 

[92] 



A Frail Dun's Helplessness 

currents, varying in swiftness and in 
direction, take it. Floating down over 
a swift run, it is now in an eddy, now 
in a swirling whirlpool. Like a little 
piece of buoyant cork, it follows only 
the motions of the current. Now let 
us imagine that instead of being abso- 
lutely free from all restraint, the in- 
sect had tied around its delicate neck 
a long leader, to whose other end was 
attached a somewhat heavy line. Sup- 
pose this line to be lying in a swifter 
current, or in a current having a dif- 
ferent direction from the current urging 
on the fly. How long could the frail 
dun keep up the natural motion given 
to it by the eddy or whirlpool upon 
whose moving surface it temporarily 
found itself.^ The strong down-stream 
current would seize the line, and the 
action of the fly would depend, not 
upon the movements of the eddying 

[93] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

water upon which it lay, but upon the 
force exerted by the current upon the 
hne, and without power of resistance 
it would be dragged wherever the line 
happened to take it. The same thing 
would occur in the case of the imita- 
tion insect forming the angler's float- 
ing lure. 

These unnatural motions given to the 
fly by the varying and conflicting forces 
exerted upon the fly and line give rise 
to what anglers call the drag. This 
drag may occur when the line is in 
swifter water than the fly, when it is 
in a slower current than the fly, or 
when there is a difference in the direc- 
tions of the currents. The drag fre- 
quently makes itself evident when one 
casts across stream or up-stream and 
across. Near the opposite bank where 
the fly is placed the current may be 
sluggish, while in the centre of the 
[94] 



How the Drag Is Caused 

stream it rushes along swiftly. The 
hne falls on this fast running water; 
the fly, if unattached to a leader, would 
pursue its way leisurely down-stream, 
wherever the slowly flowing currents 
naturally took it, but the gentle force 
exerted upon the small insect is almost 
immediately overcome by the powerful 
pull of the line, and instead of follow- 
ing its own natural course a very evi- 
dent drag sets in. 

In Fig. 6, represents the position 
of the angler, A the place where the 
fly lights, and F the spot where the 
strong midstream current exerts its 
greatest force upon the line. The nat- 
ural direction of the fly would be as 
indicated by the line A B. But its 
actual direction is the resultant of the 
two forces acting upon fly and line, 
and it follows approximately a direction 
indicated by the dotted line A C. The 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

arrow shows the direction of the cur- 
rent, and also the place where its 
greatest force is exerted. 

It can be readily understood that no 




Fia. 6 

live insect would go through any such 

unnatural performances, and that a 

trout seeing it would utterly refuse to 

take a fly acting in such a strange 

manner. 

[961 



Another Type of Drag 

Now let us take up another condi- 
tion where the current is swift at the 
opposite bank and slow in the centre 
of the stream. The natural direction 




Fig. 7 

of the fly (Fig. 7) would be from A to 
B, but the centre of the line would 
travel much more slowly, and again 
the fly would have a tendency to take 
a direction somewhat similar to the 
course shown by the dotted line A C; 

[97] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

except that it must be borne in mind 
that in these diagrams it is not clearly 
shown that both line and fly are con- 
stantly moving, though at different 
speeds, and that as they go down- 
stream their relative positions would be 
ever changing. In Fig. 6 the centre 
of the line, the current in midstream 
being swifter, would have a constantly 
increasing downward curve, while in 
Fig. 7 the curve would be upward. 
But the positions of line and fly would 
be moving constantly down-stream. 
The diagrams have been drawn in this 
simple form to prevent the confusion 
that might result from comphcated 
drawings attempting to show the al- 
ways changing curves in the line. 

The drag is again in evidence when 
one casts the fly up-stream on a com- 
paratively smooth piece of water, while 
the line falls on a swifter current be- 
[98] 



The Drag Above the Rocks 

tween the spot where the fly Hghts and 
the position of the angler. 

In Fig. 8, the angler stands at 
and casts the fly at the spot indicated 



B 



O 1 

Fig. 8 

by A, which is comparatively smooth 
water, above a group of rocks be- 
neath the surface at R; below these 
rocks the water breaks into a rapid 
run, where, at B, it is very swift. The 
line is carried down by this swift run 

[99] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

at such a speed that the fly at ^, in a 
much more gentle current, has a pro- 
nounced unnatural drag over the sur- 
face. 

Now, turning back to Fig. 6, let us 
imagine that instead of the water flow- 
ing in its natural down-stream direction 
there was an eddy at A moving up- 
stream and across stream. The drag 
of the fly would be still more pro- 
nounced than in the conditions which 
this diagram is supposed to illustrate. 
So in all conceivable cases where the 
direction or swiftness of the water 
where the fly lights is different from 
that where the line falls, the drag sets 
in unless the angler takes some precau- 
tionary measure to prevent it. 

The preventive measure generally 
most effective is the slack-line cast. 
In Fig. 6, the line A, it will be no- 
ticed, is absolutely straight — that is, 
[ 100 1 



Postponing the Drag 

the shortest distance between the two 
points and A; and the hne of the 
angler is represented as taut, without 
any slack and without a curve. The 
current will therefore seize it as soon 
as it reaches the water, and the begin- 
ning of the drag theoretically will be 
immediate. Let us not, then, cast an 
absolutely taut line, but endeavor to 
throw the line so that the drag will be 
postponed, if such a thing is possible. 
It is obvious that if the line were not 
so straight when it fell, the drag might 
not make itself evident until the cur- 
rent had straightened it out somewhat. 
So we will endeavor to make a slack- 
line cast, and instead of having it fall 
in a perfectly straight line, A, will 
try to have it take a position on the 
water somewhat as represented by the 
irregularly curved line F A, It will 
be noticed that the curve, or "belly," 

[101] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

of the line lies in an up-stream direc- 
tion, and that before the current can 
carry the centre of the line far enough 
down-stream to produce a drag, the 
fly will have an opportunity to float 
down a short distance naturally. As 
the trout we are after may be only 
a few inches below A, the fly, let us 
hope, will float without drag until it 
is over the fish. So in all cases where 
a drag is imminent, cast a slack line. 
Under the conditions illustrated by 
Fig. 7, where the current in the centre 
of the stream is slow and where the 
fly lights swift, the "belly" in the line 
should naturally be down-stream. When 
casting directly up-stream, in order to 
prevent lining the trout — that is, hav- 
ing the leader fall directly over its 
head, endeavor to throw an up-stream 
curve in the leader so that the gut will 
float down behind the fly. 

[102] 



Making a Slack-Line Cast 

We have already found that in order 
to make a fly "Hght hke thistle-down," 
it is necessary to cast it not at the spot 
where you wish it to fall, but a short 
distance directly over the spot. In 
making the slack-line cast, the fly, as 
the line is lengthened, is cast in the air 
a few feet beyond the spot where the an- 
gler wishes it to alight as well as over 
it. When the hne is nearly straight, 
and before the rod has reached its cor- 
rect position at the end of the forward 
cast, the forward sweep of the rod is 
retarded and the motion of the imi- 
tation insect on its onward flight is 
checked; the tip of the rod is imme- 
diately lowered, and instead of the line 
falling taut it drops loosely upon the 
water in irregular waves or curves. If 
the result aimed at is successfully ac- 
complished, the fly will have for a cer- 
tain length of time a natural motion. 

[103] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

The duration of this favorable condition 
of affairs will depend upon the varying 
strength of the currents and other 
causes. 



[104] 



CHAPTER X 



Wilderness Fishing Different from 
Taking ''Educated " Trout from 
Much-Fished Streams 



INSTRUCTIONS for angling with 
the dry-fly often seem to present 
to the beginner difiiculties that 
might have a tendency to discourage 
him. Yet the proper handhng of the 
floating fly is practically as easy as the 
skilful management of the sunken fly, 
and an expert wet fly fisherman should 
have no diflSculty in becoming profi- 
cient as a dry-fly angler in a compara- 
tively short time. In the London 
Field a well-known angling writer has 
said recently: "Startling as the state- 
ment may sound, it is probably true 
that the really good wet fly fisherman 

[105] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

is a greater rarity than the really good 
dry-fly man." And later, Mr. R. B. 
Marston, the veteran editor of the 
London Fishing Gazette, echoed this 
sentiment by saying: **A real expert 
with the wet fly is a much rarer bird 
than one with the dry." 

In discussing the degrees of expert- 
ness of wet fly fishermen it is neces- 
sary, in America at least, to differen- 
tiate the conditions under which the 
fishing is done. It is well known that 
in many waters of the wilderness there 
are vast numbers of trout in keen com- 
petition for food, and that these fish 
see an angler and his feathered lures 
infrequently. Almost anything in the 
way of a small bunch of bright feathers 
and glittering tinsel tied to a hook 
seems often to prove an irresistible 
attraction to the trout, and the pres- 
entation of such flies need not be 

[106] 



Imitating a TrouCs Fin 

skilfully made at all times to meet with 
unqualified success. Hence it is that 
much of the advice written in this 
country for the benefit of wet fly fish- 
ermen may be traced to those whose 
principal fishing has been done in wil- 
derness waters, and is intended for 
others who go far beyond the bounds 
of civilization for their piscatorial pleas- 
ure. Many of the most popular and 
killing wet flies imitate neither insect 
nor any other form of life. The Parma- 
cheene belle, for instance, the most 
popular of all lures in Northern waters, 
was invented in the early eighties by 
Mr. H. P. Wells, to imitate the belly- 
fin of a trout. Why a belly-fin, so sel- 
dom seen by a fish detached from the 
body of its original owner, should be 
conceived to be a natural or a favorite 
food has not been explained. Yet the 
attractions of this fly in many lakes 

[107 1 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

and streams cannot be overestimated. 
The author fished the wilderness waters 
of northern Maine for several years be- 
fore the Parmacheene belle had come 
into existence, and in those days the 
grizzly king proved an irresistible lure, 
day in and day out; while at certain 
times the red ibis, or any other fly 
made of bright red feathers, seemed 
to be a fiece de resistance that no 
trout could forego the temptation of 
seizing. I trust that wet fly fisher- 
men whose faith in the Parmacheene 
belle is deep-seated, will not think that 
I am speaking disparagingly of their 
favorite lure. Many times in recent 
years I have fished streams not so far 
north as Maine, where an angler would 
be practically sure of success if he had 
in his fly-book no other fly than this 
imitation of the trout's fin. But it 
has always been a question in my 

[108] 



Is This Really Fly-Fishing? 

mind as to what kind of food the trout 
thought was being presented, when 
fished for with this lure. The ques- 
tion might naturally be asked, and not 
ill-naturedly, whether the use of the 
imitation of the belly-fin of a trout 
should be classed as fly-fishing or bait- 
fishing. Is it not possible that the 
trout may take this red, white, and 
yellow counterfeit for a minnow or 
some other small fish as it moves 
through the water as commonly man- 
ipulated by fly-fishermen using it? 
And may not the same question be 
asked when the silver doctor and other 
*' fancy" favorites of the wilderness 
are used.^ It is certain that these 
flies are not made with the idea of 
imitating winged insects or the larvae 
of winged insects; nor as a rule do 
wet fly fishermen present them in a 
way to make their movements re- 

[109] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

semble the natural action of living 
flies. 

But while we have freely admitted 
the great killing powers of the popu- 
lar Parmacheene belle, not only in wil- 
derness streams, but in other waters 
not so far removed from civilization, 
there is little question that it is 
an absolutely useless lure in many 
of the well-known and much-fished 
streams of SuUivan County, New York, 
Pike County, Pennsylvania, and other 
similar waters. I make this state- 
ment not entirely from my own ex- 
perience, but on the testimony of skil- 
ful anglers who have fished these 
streams for many years, and who have 
tried on them at various times nearly 
all known flies. Relying upon the 
trustworthiness of information gained 
from such long experience, I have 
seldom, if ever, taken on my trips to 

[110] 



Educated Trout Particular 

these waters wet flies that had been 
favorites when used on less civihzed 
streams. 

Expert anglers who make a practice 
of visiting such streams as the Beaver- 
kill, Willowemoc, and Esopus, espe- 
cially after the early weeks of spring, 
when the water has become low and 
clear, also seem to be unanimously of 
the opinion that even an imitation fly, 
tied to resemble as closely as possible 
an insect on which the trout are accus- 
tomed to feed, will not be taken by one 
of the "educated" fish of these streams, 
or similar streams, if when on or in the 
water it does not have the same action 
as the Hve insect; and that instead of 
attracting the fish the imitation fly 
will have an exactly contrary effect if 
it is pulled through or across the cur- 
rent in the manner commonly adopted 
by some users of the sunken fly. 
[Ill] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

Is it not to the fact that many fly- 
fishermen have learned the art in the 
wilderness, where trout are not shy or 
over-particular as to how the artificial 
fly is presented to them, that the more 
or less general truth of the statement 
that "a real expert with the wet fly is 
a much rarer bird than one with the 
dry" is due? Is it not true that even 
a partially "educated" trout is liable 
to notice the unusual character of the 
movements of a weak, flying insect 
breasting heavy currents, and to be- 
come suspicious of them? The larvae 
of some aquatic insects, hatched in the 
soil of the bed of the stream, or among 
aquatic plants, after having reached 
their full growth, seek the surface by 
climbing up on the plants, or by swim- 
ming; and when performing these acts 
are often taken by the trout greedily. 
But can it be denied that at any other 

[112] 



Up-Strea7n vs. Down-Stream 

time the only way in which these larvae 
can approach the trout without caus- 
ing suspicion is by being carried down- 
stream by the current, either on or be- 
neath the surface of the stream? The 
dry-fly angler did not by any means 
invent the up-stream method of fish- 
ing, nor has it been confined to his 
cult. Arguments, apparently almost 
unanswerable, for fishing up-stream 
were made by Mr. W. C. Stewart in 
"The Practical Angler," published in 
1857, while Mr. David Webster, in 
"The Angler and the Loop-Rod" 
(1885), may be said to have completely 
riddled many of the usual arguments in 
favor of down-stream methods. Mr. 
Webster's opinion is worthy of atten- 
tion as he succeeded in making a hv- 
ing for many years by fly-fishing for 
trout in Scottish streams. The best 
argument ever written, in the judg- 

[113] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

ment of the author, for the wet fly 
appears in Mr. G. E. M. Skues' *' Minor 
Tactics of the Chalk Stream," pub- 
hshed in 1908. Mr. Skues is as great 
a behever in the imitation theory as 
the members of the dry-fly school, uses 
imitation insects no larger than the 
tiny flies of the dry-fly angler, and 
casts the fly in exactly the same man- 
ner as the dry-fly fishermen, that 
is, up-stream; but his flies sink, and 
are borne down by the current be- 
neath the surface. That they may not 
sink too deeply he oils the leader up 
to within a few inches of the fly so 
that all but one or two links of the 
gut will float upon the surface. In a 
debate held at a meeting of the An- 
glers' Club of New York in March, 
1912, on the subject of the dry-fly 
versus the wet fly, the very strongest 
arguments used by those who spoke 

[114] 



The Trout Looks Up-Stream 

for the sunken lure were that the ex- 
pert wet fly angler used precisely the 
same tackle, including gossamer leaders 
and imitation flies, as the dry-fly fish- 
erman, and presented his lures in the 
same way; that is, by casting up- 
stream and allowing the flies to be car- 
ried down naturally by the current. 

We have learned that a trout al- 
ways lies with its head up-stream, fac- 
ing the current. Who would think of 
attempting to stalk, under usual con- 
ditions, an animal from any other po- 
sition when it could be stalked just as 
easily from behind? The angler can 
approach much nearer to a trout when 
coming up from behind it, can hook it 
to better advantage, and can play it 
in water that has already been fished 
by him so that good unfished water 
will not be disturbed. And yet no less 
an authority than Dr. Henshall has 

[115] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

comparatively recently, in a published 
work, expressed the opinion that dry- 
fly fishing will not find many adherents 
in this country, "for one reason, that 
the dry-fly must be cast up-stream, 
which will never be a favorite method 
with American anglers for well-known 
reasons,'^ 

Can these "well-known reasons" 
existing in Dr. Henshall's mind be 
perhaps more potent than those ad- 
vanced by Mr. Robert Blakey, who, 
in a book published in 1846, speaks of 
the "almost impossibility" of a trout 
seizing a fly cast up-stream, claiming 
that "even if he should take it the 
power is lost to retain him," and class- 
ifies up-stream fishing as among "the 
many crotchety and fanciful rules that 
often come to light in the progress of 
angling".^ 

Let the beginners, however, who 

[116] 



Skill in Handling Tackle 

read this little work, fish up-stream 
exclusively, and if they will learn to 
handle their tackle skilfully, so that 
they will always have perfect control 
of fly, leader, and line as they are 
borne down toward them by the cur- 
rent, they will find it difficult to con- 
jure up in their minds any known rea- 
son, or any good reason, why they 
should return to the old-fashioned 
method of down-stream fishing. 



[117] 



CHAPTER XI 

Often Dry -Fly Anglers Like Con- 
ditions that Prove the Waterloo 
of the Wet Fly Man 

NEARLY all dry-fly literature 
seems to carry with it a tale 
of success. Not, however, I 
think, that the user of the floating fly 
is an egotist, or is given to boasting; 
but in writing of angling matters it is 
natural to forget our days of hard luck 
and to remember only those particu- 
larly bright occasions when we have 
gone home in the evening with a cheer- 
ful heart. 

There is no question that the wet 
fly angler can tell his tales of fortunate 
days on the streams as well as the dry- 
fly fisherman. If I were to argue the 

[118] 



Angling Art and Pleasure 

question of dry-fly versus wet fly, I 
should ignore the comparative killing 
powers of both, and base the argument 
for the floating fly entirely upon the 
pleasure to be derived from its use. 
To me dry-fly angling is the most ar- 
tistic, most fascinating, and most skil- 
ful of all out-door sports, though I 
freely accord to the wet fly angler the 
privilege of making any claim that he 
chooses for his favorite lure. We 
probably all believe the saying that 
"The ranks of anglers do not contain 
a large number of aggressive and intol- 
erant folk," and agree with Mr. T. E. 
Pritt when he says that "One of the 
charms of angling is that it presents 
all endless field for argument, specula- 
tion, and experiment." 

That the wet fly has been for many 
years a successful lure, and on many 
waters will remain so for years to come, 

[119] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

there can be no doubt. It has been so 
successful in wilderness fishing that 
few American anglers have felt the 
need of any other lure. The user of the 
sunken fly is in his glory in swift-run- 
ning streams and in rough water. In 
the early spring-time, when the streams 
are high, turbulent, and at times dis- 
colored, he goes forth with a feeling of 
the utmost confidence; moreover, he 
would consider all these conditions in 
his favor, and, if he were to make 
comparisons, would think that they 
were against the success of the dry-fly 
enthusiast. But later in the spring 
the streams become low, the water is 
of crystal clearness, and there are quiet 
pools and smooth runs where there is 
hardly a chance of the wet fly angler 
meeting with success. 

**We have all heard tales," says Mr. 
Dewar, "of men who can take trout, 

[120] 



The Faith of an Eccentric 

and take them fairly, with a wet fly 
under any known conditions, or on 
any water where there are trout to 
take; but we have heard, too, of 
showers of fish from the clouds." And 
again this author says: "The man 
who swears by the sunk fly style 
under normal conditions on the Test 
or Itchen" (smooth, placid streams), 
"is an eccentric." 

And yet the conditions that prove 
the Waterloo of the wet fly fisherman 
are frequently those most desired by 
the user of the floating fly. While often 
the greatest successes of the sunken fly 
are obtained in the early spring, before 
the waters have gone down to their 
summer conditions, it is seldom that 
the dry-fly angler is seen upon the 
streams until the warm weather has 
come and the water is naturally low 
and glass-like in its transparency. On 

[121] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

this low water and on the still pools 
the one practical method of deceiving 
the trout is by means of the dry-fly. 

Another mecca of the devotee of the 
floating fly is the stream that has been 
fished for years and that frequently has 
the reputation of having been "fished 
out." But many streams bear this 
reputation undeservedly. It has come 
to them on account of the frequent 
lack of success of anglers who fish them. 
In New York State there is a beauti- 
ful stream on whose banks and in whose 
bed many fly-fishermen may be seen 
throughout the season. In the summer 
of 1911 some twenty anglers were stop- 
ping at a comfortable inn near its banks. 
The weather and water conditions were 
very poor from their stand-point. 
Their *'hard luck" had been really 
heart-rending. "Fished out" was a 
frequent cry as the discouraged fisher- 

[ 122] 



A Really Astonishing Rise 

men returned to the inn at night. In- 
deed, it seemed so. But one afternoon 
toward sunset some of us saw on a 
large pool near the inn one of the 
most astonishing rises of trout that it 
had been our privilege to see in many 
years. There seemed to be trout every- 
where, and most of them were large. 
How did this agree with the "fished- 
out" theory? 

Evidently there were still fish in the 
stream, but why the almost total fail- 
ure of these anglers to take them with 
a fly? Was it due to the lack of in- 
sect life, and had these trout become 
bottom feeders? Or had they been 
fished for so constantly that they could 
no longer be enticed by artificial flies 
as ordinarily presented? 

If one visits a stream that has been 
fished constantly with wet flies, but on 
whose surface a dry-fly has seldom been 

[123] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

seen, again in the judgment of the au- 
thor the one best lure is the floating 
fly. One of my friends, whose name is 
a household word among men fond of 
the great out-doors, recently stated that 
a stream which flows through the lands 
on which his summer home is situated 
had been, in his opinion, practically 
"fished out" for several years. "Yet 
one day last summer," he said, "two 
dry-fly anglers came up from New 
York. I went to the stream to watch 
them. They were taking trout at al- 
most every cast and returning them 
to the stream." I predict that ere 
long this gentleman will become a dry- 
fly enthusiast, if he has not already 
reached that stage. 

Mr. Halford says in his "Dry-Fly 
Fishing in Theory and Practice": "In 
Derbyshire, a few years back, every 
one used two, and many three, four, or 

[124] 



Unjust Suspicions of Fraud 

even more flies; every one fished down- 
stream, and fished the water. Now 
hosts of anglers have invaded the dis- 
trict, the trout and grayhng are as shy 
and wary as any in the country, and 
what is the result? Day after day, and 
year after year, more of the successful 
anglers in the district fish up-stream 
with floating flies and over rising fish 
only, and it is only on occasional blus- 
tering days that one of the old school 
succeeds in getting a moderate bag. 
The same tale can be told of all parts 
of the country, where the local anglers, 
taught from childhood to fish with sunk 
fly, laugh at the possibility of a bag 
being made with the dry-fly. An ex- 
ample of this: Not many years ago, 
in Dorchester, one of the best dry-fly 
fishermen of the day was seriously sus- 
pected, and even accused, of not fish- 
ing fair, because he succeeded in killing 

[125] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

great numbers of the largest fish on 
days when the natives with wet fly 
could do no good at all. At length 
his proceedings were quietly but thor- 
oughly watched by one of the local 
talent, with the result that he who 
went to discover a fraud found that he 
had been for years following a mistaken 
policy. . . . Ever after he forswore 
the wet fly, and himself was able in 
turn to teach and convert others to the 
more modern and more successful 
school of angling. From north and 
south, from east and west, in later times 
fly -fishermen came to Winchester, where 
they saw, learned and conquered the use 
of the floating fly . . . they carried the 
information all over the country, until 
at length the spread of dry-fly fishing 
has become something dreadful to con- 
template, because in the rivers where 
it is practised the fish never get a rest, 

[126] 



Tempting Fish to Their Ruin 

but day after day, week after week, and 
month after month, are continually and 
continuously tempted to their destruc- 
tion." 



[127] 



CHAPTER XII 

Fine and Far-Off Casting and the 
Value of Close Fishing when 
Throwing a Fly Up-Streavi 

IT was Charles Cotton, I think, who 
first advised "fine and far-off" 
easting. 
A fine and far-off cast is a good thing 
to use occasionally; and it is always 
of great value to anglers to possess the 
ability to make a long cast when neces- 
sary. Fishermen who have never stood 
upon a platform in a tournament are 
rather prone, at times, to belittle the 
attainments of a tournament caster, 
and to say emphatically that "tourna- 
ment casting is not angling." That is 
right; it is not, but it is a legitimate 
and valuable part of the angling game, 

[128] 



Value of Tournament Work 

and while all good anglers are not good 
tournament casters, yet nearly all the 
good tournament casters of to-day are 
good anglers. The very worst that can 
happen to an angler who goes upon a 
tournament platform, and is success- 
ful, is to learn how to cast a long line. 
What fly-fisherman would not like to 
possess the ability to make a long cast 
when he saw near the opposite bank of 
a stream a good rise which he could 
reach in no other way than by casting 
his fly seventy or eighty feet or more.^^ 
The tournament casters also learn 
much that is not generally learned in 
other ways about tackle, about the ac- 
tion of rods, the good and poor quali- 
ties of various lines, and also learn to 
handle rod and line in the manner of 
an expert. 

There is also another great advan- 
tage to the angler who is a proficient 

[129] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

long-distance caster; a man of medium 
ability in handling a rod, by practice 
can learn to put out a line eighty or 
eighty-five feet with a five-ounce rod, 
and seventy-five to eighty feet with a 
four-ounce rod. For somewhat the 
same reason that an athlete who can 
lift a one-hundred-pound weight with 
one hand can easily juggle a weight 
of ten pounds and do almost anything 
he pleases with it, so an angler who can 
cast eighty or eight-five feet, makes 
the shorter casts necessary on the 
streams with remarkable ease and 
skill; casting these distances without 
effort, he can devote all his attention 
to placing his fly accurately and deli- 
cately. Ideas frequently held by those 
who are not accustomed to taking part 
in tournaments as to the "freak" tackle 
used by distance casters are generally 
erroneous. It is true that the typical 

[130] 



Fishing Conditions Copied 

heavy single-handed rod used in the un- 
hmited weight class is a very clumsy 
weapon, and, in the author's opinion, 
of little use, if any, in actual fishing. 
But the lighter tournament rods, five 
and three-fourth and four and three- 
fourth ounces in weight respectively, 
are usually the rods most liked by their 
owners for use on the streams; and in 
the case of the author, at least, who 
has had a somewhat limited experience 
in tournament work, the beautiful Eng- 
lish lines used could not be better suited 
to fishing with the dry-fly. Each year 
the managers of tournaments are seek- 
ing more and more to copy actual fish- 
ing conditions, both in tackle and in 
holding accuracy and delicacy contests. 
It is not the object of these remarks, 
however, to advocate long-distance 
casting on the streams. On the other 
hand, the writer is much in favor of 

[131] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

the idea of fishing as near the trout as 
possible. This method has manifold 
advantages. First, if one is close to a 
trout he may use a short cast, and 
with little line out the fly may be 
placed on the water with the greatest 
accuracy and delicacy. It must not be 
forgotten that the up-stream fisherman 
makes much capital of the fact that 
he approaches the fish from behind, 
as trout always lie with their heads 
up-stream. Where a short cast is 
made the fly can be thrown without 
placing much of the line and leader on 
the water. The current is constantly 
bringing the floating fly in the direc- 
tion of the angler. As it comes down- 
stream the angler can take care of 
much of the slack by merely lifting the 
point of the rod; the remaining slack 
can be easily stripped in by the left 
hand. When the trout rises the an- 

[132 1 



Using a Short-Line Cast 

gler has perfect control of the Hne when 
fishing close, the fish is hooked more 
certainly than with a long line out, 
and the control over the fish is imme- 
diate. If the surface of the water is 
broken or ruffled, either by a breeze 
or because the stream is running swiftly 
over a rough bottom, an extremely 
short line should be used. As the 
water gets smoother and the current 
less powerful a longer cast may become 
necessary, and when fishing a pool with 
a smooth, placid surface the angler 
should keep much farther away from 
the fish. But in this case no unusual 
difficulties are presented, for the hne 
moving slowly in the gentle current 
may be stripped in without difficulty, 
and be under the control of the angler 
at all times. 

A most valuable lesson for a trout 
fisherman to learn is what we may call 

[133 1 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

unobtrusiveness, and also deliberative- 
ness of movement. A trout is fright- 
ened by any sudden, quick movements 
that may attract its eye or by unusual 
disturbances of the water. Every step 
up-stream, when in promising water, 
should be taken carefully and deliber- 
ately, and all motions made by the 
angler should be as gentle and incon- 
spicuous as possible. I recognize the 
fact that there are many who visit the 
trout streams who believe that the 
proper way to fish is to go over as 
much of the length of the stream as 
possible in a day, neglecting all except- 
ing particularly good spots, and mak- 
ing only a few casts over each of these. 
Sometimes several miles of stream are 
covered by them in a few hours. Is it 
not a better method to take one's time, 
fish all good spots carefully and thor- 
oughly, and pay little attention to the 

[134] 



Hurrying a Fishing Fault 

distance covered in the course of the 
day? The author agrees thoroughly 
with Mr. Dewar when he says that 
"there is no surer sign of an unaccom- 
pHshed dry-fly fisherman than hurry- 
ing. A good fisherman will not hesi- 
tate to stay an hour if he sees a good 
chance of deceiving a heavy trout 
which is feeding well." 

A short time ago the idea of fishing 
a pool in the manner suggested in 
Chapter VI was somewhat severely 
criticised by a veteran New York an- 
gler, who seemed to object to "laying 
out a trout pool as one would lay out 
a checker board." At the same time, 
I gained an impression from his re- 
marks that he did not think that the 
dry-fly could be successful on Ameri- 
can streams "because it was invented 
for use on the placid English chalk 
streams." A logical idea! 

[135] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

As a matter of fact, the "mathema- 
tical pool" was used to express, in the 
simplest manner possible, two ideas: 
First, in pool fishing, to cover all good 
water carefully ; second, always to cast 
so that the fly would fall in the water 
nearest to the angler first, one cast 
succeeding another in such a way that 
no good unfished water would be dis- 
turbed. It is a question whether the 
critic referred to objected to the idea 
of covering all good water, or to the 
measure suggested to prevent disturb- 
ing good unfished water; or possibly 
he did not grasp the idea of the math- 
ematical pool at all. The question of 
the adaptability of the dry-fly to many 
American streams is beyond argument; 
for many years it has been used upon 
them with great success. The editor 
of the Fishing Gazette, of London, in 
speaking of the dry-fly on American 

[136] 



A Challenge to the Angler 

waters, said last March: ''The old 
stagers pooh-pooh it, as many still do 
here, but it makes way for itself be- 
cause it appeals to, as well as chal- 
lenges, the angler." 



[137] 



CHAPTER XIII 



The Advantages of Stalking a 
Trout from Behind, and Ex- 
amples of Good and Bad Gen- 
eralship 



tl FTER streams have been fished 
/-\ for years, and the trout in them 
are apparently scarce, very shy, 
and extremely difficult to catch, it is 
customary, to refer to their inhabitants 
as *' educated trout." In many of the 
well-known New York streams, for in- 
stance, the trout are supposed to be 
educated to a high degree. They can 
not be enticed by the ordinary methods 
of the wet fly fisherman, especially in 
the summer season, though it is in these 
very streams that the expert with the 
floating fly loves to match his skill 

[138] 



Position in Stream Tactics 

against the cunning of the trout. The 
"education" theory has been accepted 
by nearly all angling writers, and few 
have questioned it. But can not this 
theory be used at times to "cover a 
multitude of sins" on the part of the 
angler, such as gross carelessness in 
showing himself to the fish, or present- 
ing the fly in an unnatural or slovenly 
manner.^ 

While meditating upon this subject 
one winter evening, there flashed across 
my mind the words "the point of van- 
tage." Now, this is a very common 
expression, used almost daily, and it 
has probably been used times without 
number by fishermen. But the thought 
that came to me in this connection was 
that there is one "point of vantage" 
for the angler in the case of nearly 
every trout which he is endeavoring to 
raise to the fly, and that an angler 

[139] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

making thorough and systematic study 
of the best possible position in each and 
every case would prove himself in the 
long run to be a fly-fisherman of a rare 
and superior type. In stream tactics 
what can be of more importance than 
the study of position? And yet how 
many times during the course of a 
day's fishing is even a fairly experi- 
enced angler or his shadow, or his rod 
or its shadow, plainly seen by the trout 
when he flatters himself that the fish 
is in complete ignorance of his pres- 
ence? Or how often is an angler, even 
though his presence be unknown to the 
fish, in the very best possible position 
— the position that we have referred to 
as "the point of vantage"? It is plain 
that this point is the one spot where 
the angler is as near the trout as it is 
possible to be without coming within 
range of its keen sight. 

[140] 



Importance of Invisibility 

As boys, we were all taught the great 
importance of keeping out of sight of 
the trout. When there were bushes be- 
side the stream, we hid behind them as 
much as possible. When fishing the 
meadow brooks, we kept far away from 
the banks, many times crouching down 
or getting on our knees when casting 
bait or fly into the favorite hiding places 
of the trout. But now, as men, we are 
perhaps fishing on larger streams, and 
as we cast our floating fly up-stream 
we are wading. It is of the utmost 
importance not to be seen by the fish 
as we carefully approach it from be- 
hind, and yet it is essential that we 
should use no longer line than is ab- 
solutely necessary. The shorter the 
line the more accurately and delicately 
we can place the fly, and we have 
learned that there is more certainty of 
hooking the rising fish, and of control- 

[141] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

ling it when hooked, with the shortest 
possible length of line out. What rare 
judgment would he have who always 
could place himself in that one spot 
that marked the limit of invisibility, 
and yet was the nearest possible to the 
fish! 

While trout have other senses, yet 
the sense of sight is the only one to 
which it is necessary for the careful an- 
gler to give particular heed. There- 
fore, he must know something about 
the limit of a trout's vision before he 
can judge correctly as to whether the 
fish can see him. All trout lie with 
their heads up-stream, or at least fac- 
ing the flow of the current; in the case 
of deflected currents, they face these 
currents. Drawing an imaginary circle 
around a trout, it can see objects 
within that portion of the circle in 
front and on either side, covering about 

[142] 



Angles of a Troufs Vision 

300 degrees; this refers to objects on 
the horizontal plane of the eye of the 
fish. There will remain then an arc 
of invisibility behind the trout of about 
60 degrees. 




Fia. 9 

The eyes of the trout are at T; A T B and B T C are angles of 30 de- 
grees each. A B Chan arc of 60 degrees and is the zone of invisibility 
of objects on the same horizontal plane as the trout. 



When the angler is wading, naturally 
his rod and the upper part of his body 
are above the horizontal plane of the 
trout, and they may come within the 
vision of the fish at a certain point 

[143] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

above and behind it. In discussing 
these questions, however, the laws of 
refraction would have to be gone into 
far beyond the limits of this work. 
When the surface of the water is nat- 
urally rough, or is ruffled by a breeze, 
the angler need not concern himself so 
much about keeping out of sight; when 
behind the fish under these conditions 
a short line may be used, and the "fine 
and far off" casting be left for the still, 
clear pools with glassy surface. 

What a never-ending study does this 
question of exact position — the one 
point of vantage — under ever-varying 
conditions, offer to the thoughtful dry- 
fly angler! 

This thought has become insepar- 
ably connected in my mind with many 
angling failures of the past — days of 
disappointment because at times splen- 
did pools had failed to produce antici- 

[144] 



Angling Failures Explained 

pated results, though most carefully 
fished, as I thought at the time. In 
my imagination I have gone back to 
some of these pools and fished them 
over again. How often in the days 
of the past had failures been due, not 
so much to lack of knowledge of trout 
habits, not to bungling casting, but to 
poor generalship in choosing position .^^ 
There are times when there are ob- 
stacles in the way that make it im- 
possible to place one's self in the best 
tactical position; but there are others 
when this position is not taken simply 
through ignorance, lack of study of the 
situation, carelessness of methods, in- 
difference, or — let us not deceive our- 
selves — sheer indolence or lack of am- 
bition. 

Here is a case in point: One day in 
the last week in May, not many years 
ago, I was wading a stream in Sullivan 

[145] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

County not generally known by New 
York anglers, when I came to a smooth, 
flat pool, generally shallow, and not 
promising any favorable results, except 
possibly in one spot. A little more 
than half-way up the pool near the 
bank to my right, was a fairly large 
rock, and the water in front of it was 
at least three or four feet deep. Not 
wishing to waste any time on the un- 
promising water, I immediately waded 
to the point 0, in Fig. 10, which is a 
very correct diagram of this pool. My 
position was about twenty-five feet 
below the rock R, where I thought a 
trout should be. The little whirling 
dun lighted gently, with wings upright 
at C When it had floated down to a 
point opposite the centre of the rock, 
I was not much surprised to see a very 
fair trout rise to the fly. The fish 
missed and was frightened, so I went 

[146] 



A Good Tactical Position 

on up-stream, marking the spot, how- 
ever, for another try in the afternoon. 
The tactical position was perfect. 




Fig. 10 



When on my way homeward this 
pool was reached as the evening shad- 
ows were falling. I had sufficient in- 

[147] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

telligence to know that if I wanted 
this fish badly I should go below the 
tail of the pool and wade carefully up 
to the point 0, from which I had cast 
in the morning. But, instead, I con- 
tented myself by walking down the 
other side of the pool, at a good dis- 
tance from the bank, and took a posi- 
tion at D, There was not a bright sky 
behind me, the sun had set, daylight 
was fast disappearing, and I was fully 
sixty feet from the fish. But when the 
rod was raised for the first false cast, 
away went the trout like a scared cat. 
This incident shows at what an angle, 
and at what a distance, even in a fail- 
ing light, a trout is able to see an angler 
or his rod. 

Now will be related an example of 
bad judgment, aided by a penchant 
possessed by the author at times to do 
things with the least amount of labor 

[148] 



Some Angling Anticipations 

possible, as I discovered many months 
afterward through the kind oflSces of 
Mr. La Branche. On August 29, 1911, 
I was fishing on that dehghtful stream, 
the Willowemoc, having gone to De 
Bruce to put in the last three days of 
the season. In the afternoon I came 
to a very beautiful pool — beautiful in 
every way, but especially so from the 
angler's view-point. The water was 
dark and deep, and on the eastern 
shore flowed rather swiftly by the edge 
of a large rock on the bank. "Here is 
where I am sure to take a trout worth 
having," I thought, as I began to dry 
my favorite whirling dun. All angling 
instincts, natural and acquired, told me 
that there should be large trout in this 
pool. The place where I expected fully 
to see the record trout rise was in the 
neighborhood of the spot indicated by 
the letter A, opposite the large rock 

[149] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

at the right in Fig. 11. I happened to 
be in fine form that day, and from early 
morning my nerves had seemed to be 
at just the right tension to enable me 
to place the fly accurately and deli- 
cately, while in difficult places I had 
been fortunate enough to make many 
skilful casts that had done away al- 
most completely with that bane of all 
dry-fly anglers, the drag. The water 
was so deep at the lower end of the 
pool and up to within a few feet of 
the left bank, that in the various posi- 
tions indicated by I had entered the 
pool as far as the length of my waders 
would allow me to go, while before 
reaching these positions I had fished 
thoroughly other portions of the pool 
below; yet I regarded that portion of 
the pool indicated in a general way by 
C, C, C, C, as the very cream of the 
water. The casts were unusually long, 

[150] 



Good Casting — Poor Fishing 

but nearly always the fly performed ad- 
mirably; as aa exhibition of casting I 
could not find much room for criticism. 




A 



but I now look back upon it as a poor 
exhibition of fishing. 

Soon another angler appeared, and, 
much to my surprise, told me that it 

[151] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

was useless to "waste time on this 
pool," as trout were never caught 
there. Wet fly fishermen often say this 
of good pools. 

However, I did not believe him, and 
the whirling dun continued floating 
down most enticingly. 

Then another angler came along, and, 
stopping to tell me the same thing, hur- 
ried up-stream. 

Some time afterward, completely 
baffled, I followed in the steps of the 
others, and left this most promising 
looking pool a sadder but not a wiser 
man. Not a sign of good fish had I 
seen. There were tall trees behind me, 
and heavy clouds in the sky, and both 
weather and water conditions were 
such that it did not once occur to me 
that I or my rod might possibly have 
been seen by fish feeding by the op- 
posite bank. Nor did a realization, or 

[152] 



Help in Solving a Problem 

even a suspicion, of this come to my 
mind until early in the following Feb- 
ruary. All anglers have a habit of 
thinking over during the winter months 
successes and defeats of the previous 
season or seasons. Many times my 
imagination had taken me back to this 
pool, and sometimes I had exclaimed: 
"Can it be possible that the other 
anglers were right when they said 
that there were no fish there? If so, 
why should trout shun so beautiful a 
pool?" 

One morning, months after, I hap- 
pened to be on a train with Mr. La 
Branche, who has spent many days on 
the Willowemoc, and as always when 
we meet, we began "talking fish." I 
told him of the experience related 
above, described the pool, drew a dia- 
gram of it, learned that he was thor- 
oughly familiar with every inch of this 

I 153 1 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

water, and, furthermore, that he had 
taken several large trout from the 
exact places that I had been casting 
over with so much care, zeal, and ex- 
pectancy. 

But his points of vantage had been 
the places marked X, X, X in the dia- 
gram, almost directly below the fish 
and near the other bank. 

"Why did you not fish from there?" 
he asked. 

"Because, on account of the depth 
of the water and the strength of the 
current below the pool, I did not think 
one could get there." 

"No," he replied, "it was because 
you wanted to take things too easily." 

"Then," I said, "I believe there is 
no question but that at my position 
I may have been seen by the fish on 
the other side of the stream." 

And that may be the complete ex- 

[154] 



Reasoning, Right and Wrong 

planation of the apparent mystery; for 
it was a mystery that I could not get a 
rise. I had been entirely right about 
its being a splendid trout pool, and the 
other men had been wrong, and I had 
thought that my position was good. 
But this thought was possibly an error 
fatal to success. There is httle doubt 
that if it had been good, easy going 
across the stream at the lower end of 
the pool I should naturally at first 
have taken a position near the right 
bank and below the trout; but to 
have gotten over to the proper place 
from which to cast would have meant 
a considerable walk down-stream, fol- 
lowed by wading over difficult places 
up-stream. 

Whether or not I should have been 
more successful in this other position, 
the incident illustrates the great im- 
portance of taking very particular 

[155] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

pains to select carefully the best pos- 
sible point of vantage from which to 
cast, even if it takes some extra effort 
to do so. 



[156] 



I CHAPTER XIV 

I Two Old Trout of the Pools, and 

( the Little Dry-Fly that Fi- 

\ nally Accomplished Their Ruin 



THE author's early experiences 
with the floating fly were 
neither fruitful nor encourag- 
ing; but he fully realizes that this 
lack of success was entirely his own 
fault, and was due both to a lack of 
knowledge of dry-fly methods and to 
an insufficiently aroused interest in 
them. One day several years ago he 
saw in a tackle shop some flies differ- 
ent from any in his fly-books, and hav- 
ing been told that they were the Eng- 
lish floating flies, laid in a small stock 
of them, while the tackle-dealer briefly 
explained how they were used. After- 

[157] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

ward these flies were taken on several 
trips, but were unthought of and un- 
used. One day he met an angler who 
had used the dry-fly method of fishing 
and who seemed to be enthusiastic 
about it. The author made up his 
mind that he would try the floating 
fly at the very next opportunity that 
presented itself. But it must be re- 
membered that he had been a con- 
firmed wet fly fisherman for more than 
thirty years, and while he had ad- 
vanced in the wet fly art so far as to 
use only a single small fly, and leaders 
fully as fine as those made for dry-fly 
angling, yet when he reached a stream 
it was natural for him to think of the 
lures that had been his companions 
since boyhood and not to attempt to 
branch out into new fields. 

But one May day, four or five years 
ago, when on a week's end fishing trip, 
[158] 



A Contumacious Old Trout 

he was driven to a point verging upon 
exasperation by a large trout which 
persisted in rising leisurely from a hole 
beside an old stump in a pool that had 
been a favorite of the author's for 
several years. When its first rise was 
seen the angler placed over it one of 
his most attractive wet flies with a 
feeling of confidence that the trout 
could not resist it. But resist it he 
did, not only on the first cast, but on 
succeeding casts. Then the pool was 
rested, and another favorite fly was 
tried with the same result. The trout 
was still rising occasionally, but paid 
no attention to the artificial lure; once 
it arose just as the imitation touched 
the water and within a few inches 
of it, apparently entirely unconcerned 
about the wiles of the angler attempt- 
ing to lure it to destruction. Again 
the pool was rested and the trout 

[159] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

soon attacked with another pattern. 
It happened that this was not the 
first day that the same tactics had 
been tried both by the writer and his 
friends, and this particular trout had 
gained a well-deserved reputation. To 
make the matter worse, the author, in 
a fit of vainglorious boasting, had made 
arrangements at the inn that morning 
to have this fish cooked for his dinner 
that very evening. 

Finally, having reached a point bor- 
dering upon total discouragement, the 
angler sat down to take a rest and to 
think things over. In a few minutes 
there was a "plop," and another big 
swirl by the stump; the trout was still 
doing business at the same old stand, 
but the angler had apparently closed 
up shop and ceased to take interest in 
the affairs going on about him. 

But in a moment he sat erect, with 

[160] 



Floating Deception Wins 

the appearance of a man who had 
solved a great and weighty problem. 
An idea had suddenly flashed through 
his mind! A tiny japanned vest-pocket 
eyed-fly box lay open before him, and 
he was gazing intently at its long neg- 
lected contents. There were within 
this box httle whirling duns, Wick- 
ham's fancies, Jenny spinners, black 
gnats and coachmen — all beautifully 
tied Enghsh floating flies. He selected 
a whirhng dun, which has ever since 
been one of his favorite lures. It was 
carefully knotted to the filmy leader, 
and a moment after the next rise of the 
fish it was floating in the centre of the 
swirl with wings erect. Then some- 
thing took place that had not happened 
before in this spot that season, so far 
as records showed; the old trout had 
sucked in the httle dun, apparently 
without the slightest suspicion that it 

[1611 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

was not a natural insect, and the hook 
was firmly imbedded in its mouth. 

This should have been a lesson to me, 
but I must confess that it was not. 
True, I often thought of this episode 
and admitted that the dry-fly on that 
occasion had saved the day; further- 
more, I listened more attentively when 
anglers spoke of the floating lure; but 
the microbe of enthusiasm had not as 
yet reached its mark. 

The following spring I went to the 
same stream and fully intended to 
give the dry-fly a thorough try-out. 
But when the opening day of the sea- 
son dawned, the morning after my ar- 
rival, the habits of a lifetime had full 
possession of me, and the dry-flies were 
forgotten. This was in the middle of 
April. After returning from this trip, 
there came a feeling of regret that I 
had not spent at least a part of the 

[162] 



Fooling Another Foxy Fish 

time fishing with the floating lure, and 
so I hurried back to the stream early 
in May, fully intending that this trip 
should be devoted exclusively to prac- 
tice with the dry-fly. The results 
were neither good nor bad; the fish- 
ing seemed to be poor that week, and 
I used the wet fly and the dry-fly al- 
ternately, fortune favoring one about 
as much as the other. I performed 
one surprising feat, however, with the 
floating fly that I have always at- 
tributed to amazing good luck rather 
than to particularly good management. 
It was well known to local and visiting 
anglers that a large trout occupied an 
almost impregnable position in the 
upper part of a long pool above a dam, 
and it had been considered impossible 
to reach it with any known lure, with- 
out giving it previous warning of dan- 
ger. It could not be cast for from 

[163] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

below, and rocks and bushes made it 
impossible to assail it from either side; 
while above, a barrier of rocks was 
made higher by an old pine tree that 
had fallen across the stream. Many 
anglers had schemed to take this 
trout, but none had succeeded in mak- 
ing even a good attempt at doing so. 
To make a long story short, I cast a 
fly from above the fallen pine tree and 
over it, without even seeing the water 
in which the fish lay. The floating fly 
was so cast that it must have drifted 
down over the trout; in an instant I 
either heard, or imagined that I heard 
the "plop" of a rising fish, and we 
were at once engaged in a struggle, 
neither of us in sight of the other. 
How it was possible from that posi- 
tion to '*play" this trout to a stand- 
still without getting hopelessly tan- 
gled I did not know; but in a short 

[164] 



Fast-Growing Enthusiasm 

time it showed signs of weakening, 
and I laid my rod on the top of the 
barrier formed by the rocks and the 
pine tree, clambered over as fast as I 
could, picked up the rod again, and 
the fish was soon in the net. 

By this time I had begun to be some- 
what accustomed to the use of the dry- 
fly, but still lacked the confidence in 
myself necessary to handle it to the 
best advantage. The following winter 
I most fortunately came across Mr. 
Halford's early books and read them 
greedily. The naturalness of dry-fly 
methods as described by him was ab- 
solutely convincing, and I became en- 
thusiastic over what I then began to 
consider the most artistic and beauti- 
ful of all methods of angling. After- 
ward I had the great good fortune to 
meet some of our dry-fly experts, and 
now feel competent to go upon the 
[ 165 ] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

streams alone and — at least learn new 
things about this delightful art. 

The incidents related have not been 
written so much with the idea of en- 
tertaining the reader, as with the hope 
that they will point a moral to the be- 
ginner with the dry-fly, with the re- 
sult that he will start in at once to 
master dry-fly fishing instead of drift- 
ing along aimlessly until a chance hap- 
pening compels him to realize the de- 
sirability of becoming a skilful dry-fly 
angler. 

At first, if an angler has been a wet 
fly fisherman all his Ufe, the dry-fly 
and the methods of its use may seem 
somewhat strange to him when he 
takes them up; in other words, he is 
apt to lack that confidence in himself 
and the dry-fly that he has when cast- 
ing the wet fly, to the handhng of 
which he has become thoroughly ac- 

[166] 



Imaginary Difficulties 

customed. Many are wont to imagine, 
at first, that there is something more 
difficult about dry-fly anghng than 
fishing with the sunken lure. This, I 
think, is not so when one has acquired 
the knack of it. It may be possible 
for a bungling fisherman to meet with 
success in some wilderness waters, or 
at times in streams nearer civilization 
when they are high and discolored. 
But to be a finished wet fly angler one 
must possess as much skill as the dry- 
fly fisherman. Nothing but experience 
can teach a man where the trout lie 
in the streams; if one starts right, and 
is shown how, it is comparatively easy 
to cast a fly skilfully. There are no 
insurmountable obstacles in the way of 
becoming a successful dry-fly angler 
that do not confront the user of the 
sunken fly. 

But give the dry-fly a chance; one 

[167] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

without previous practice cannot go 
upon a stream for one day, and meet- 
ing with no success rightfully condemn 
the dry-fly, as has been done the past 
year by several friends and acquaint- 
ances of the author. How many 
times have not one but many anglers 
spent an entire week fishing with wet 
flies on some well-known trout stream, 
without taking altogether more than a 
few small fish? My advice to the be- 
ginner with the dry-fly is to go ahead 
and make a success of it, without being 
discouraged by real or fancied ob- 
stacles. The first rise to the imita- 
tion insect, as it floats down the stream 
in plain sight of the angler, will give 
the beginner a thrill he has seldom had 
when he has felt the tug of a trout 
taking the sunken fly. The dry-fly 
game is worth while, and no one should 
hesitate to make any efforts necessary 

[168] 



A Plea for Sportsmanshi'p 

to overcome what may appear to him 
to be difficulties in the way of becom- 
ing an accompHshed dry-fly fisherman. 
The author is intensely interested in 
seeing the use of the dry-fly spread in 
America for several reasons, of which 
the principal one is, perhaps, that it 
will give a greatly added pleasure to 
our anglers. It is a delicate and artis- 
tic method of taking trout, and I have 
found almost without exception that 
dry-fly experts have such a great love 
of the game, that a heavy creel at the 
end of the day is not the principal de- 
sideratum. In these days of depleted 
streams it is most necessary that the 
doctrine should be spread broadcast 
that the one pleasure of trout fishing, 
apart from the joy of being close to 
nature, is the matching of one's wits 
against the cunning of the trout. He 
alone deserves the title of sportsman 

[169] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

who returns carefully to the water all 
trout that he does not need for food; 
as soon as the fish is taken into the 
net, all the sport to be had with that 
particular fish is over, and when killed 
and put into the creel it has become 
simply meat, 

I apprehend that one of the dis- 
couragements with which the dry-fly 
beginner is liable to meet for some 
time to come will be improper tackle, 
foisted upon him, unintentionally, per- 
haps, by dealers who themselves are 
not familiar with the flies and lead- 
ers used by dry-fly experts, and who 
think that they have made their best 
efforts to secure a supply of proper 
tackle. Some friends have complained 
that dry-flies used by them last season 
could not be made to float; while I 
have heard certain dealers recommend 
leaders almost strong enough for sal- 

[170] 



Care in Purchasing Tackle 

mon fishing, and yet they did it 
without intent to deceive. Therefore, 
whenever he can do so, it will be ad- 
visable for the beginner to consult 
some expert dry-fly angler before pur- 
chasing tackle, especially flies and 
leaders. If the enthusiasm over this 
method of fishing becomes general 
among fly-fishermen, as it now bids 
fair to do, it will be only a short time 
before all our best tackle dealers have 
a full and proper equipment of dry- 
fly necessities. 



[171] 



CHAPTER XV I 

Artificial Dry-Flies and a Few I 

Words About the Living Eph- ( 

emeridce \ 



IT seems reasonable to suppose that 
almost any one with an analytical 
mind, whether a fisherman or not, 
would assent readily to the proposition 
that a trout, when in a mood to feed 
on insects, would be more inclined to 
take an artificial fly closely resembling 
the natural insects upon which it has 
been accustomed to feed, than a lure 
bearing no resemblance to any living 
thing. Those who pretend to believe 
in a contrary theory sometimes en- 
deavor to clinch their argument tri- 
umphantly by saying that "a trout is 
not an entomologist'' I How absurd to 

[172] 



Trout Carefully Selective 

claim that it would have to be to se- 
lect the food it likes best. It must 
not be forgotten that a trout from its 
earliest infancy has but two principal 
occupations — to exercise a constant 
watchfulness lest it fall into the clutches 
of its enemies and to secure its food en- 
tirely unaided. From almost the time 
it is hatched the little trout fry has no 
one to show it what to eat; it must 
make its own selection of food. Must 
it be an entomologist to be able to do 
this.^ Who that has passed many days 
on the streams, and has performed 
autopsies on the fish, can doubt that 
at times, at least, the trout is most 
carefully selective in its food.^^ What 
angler is there who has not seen in a 
trout's stomach the black mass made 
up of thousands of little gnats, all of 
one species, and failed to find a sin- 
gle specimen of another insect, though 

[173] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

several varieties of flies, at other times 
greedily taken by the fish, may have 
been on the water at the time this 
fish was feeding? Does this selection 
on the part of the trout indicate that it 
must necessarily be an entomologist? 

While in wet fly fishing it is possible 
and even probable that frequently the 
trout takes a lure resembling in no way 
any living creature, so far as man can 
judge, simply because it looks as if it 
possibly might be something good to 
eat, yet there seems to be every reason 
to believe that the trout takes the dry- 
fly floating upon the surface of the 
water for a winged insect, and for 
nothing else. Therefore, dry-fly an- 
gling may be said to be based upon the 
imitation theory. It is true that while 
the hands of the most skilful of fly- 
tiers cannot fashion of the materials at 
his command an exact imitation of a 

[174] 



Good Imitations Necessary 

living fly, yet it is undoubtedly possible 
to make such good imitations of natural 
flies that they deceive the trout at least 
momentarily. It seems apparent that 
if human skill cannot fashion an imi- 
tation of a living insect so that its com- 
parative crudity is not apparent, the 
very best imitations possible should be 
the aim of the fly-tier and of the an- 
gler. In the face of the great mass of 
evidence that exists in the writings of 
expert anglers, it would seem impos- 
sible that a man with an unprejudiced 
mind could fail to believe that trout 
take many varieties of floating flies 
thinking them to be the live insects 
that they are intended to represent. 
Further, it is not doubted by many in- 
telligent and experienced anglers that 
the trout can distinguish the minute 
differences between the males and fe- 
males of these various species. 

[175] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

If, then, the dry-fly angler seems pre- 
pared to prove by experience the the- 
ory that the trout mistakes his lures 
for actual living insects, it may be 
asked: How is it that at times he is 
successful with floating flies that do not 
resemble, at least in color, any known 
insect? For the dry-fly, as well as the 
wet, has its list of nondescripts or 
fancy flies. The simplest explanation 
may be that of the late H. G. McClel- 
land, who believed it unnecessary to 
hunt for any complicated scientific 
theory. Why not merely say that the 
trout, with its predatory instincts, sees 
this small weak thing floating above it, 
and, not fearing it, seizes it at a ven- 
ture? But there occurs to me fully as 
simple a theory and one that appears 
at least as reasonable. Even the fancy 
flies of the dry-fly angler are generally 
the same size and shape as the living 

[176] 



Fancy Flies, Wet and Dry 

ephemeridae. Slight differences in color 
are not liable to startle the fish, per- 
haps, especially when it has only a 
momentary glimpse of the flies as they 
float over it. If the color of the body — 
a body wrapped with gold tinsel, for 
instance — marks the prominent point 
of difference, it may be that this vari- 
ation in color will serve merely to at- 
tract the attention of the fish after it 
has been sated with food of more 
sombre coloring, without having a ten- 
dency to startle it. It has many times 
been observed by dry-fly anglers that 
after they had tried without success 
many of their reliable patterns that 
were exact imitations, a fancy pattern 
would succeed in bringing about the 
desired result of raising the trout. But 
even so, it seems to me that there is a 
vast difference between the possible ex- 
planations of the success of fancy pat- 

[177], 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

terns of wet flies and of dry-flies, for 
as a rule the latter usually resemble 
the favorite duns in size, shape, and 
action, while the wet flies are admitted, 
even by devotees of the sunken fly, to 
resemble no living thing. 

A vast majority of the dry-flies used 
by anglers are tied in imitation of small 
ephemeral insects called duns. These 
ephemeridse exist in large numbers and 
there are many varieties, though the 
described species may be not more than 
two hundred. A few of them are large, 
such as the May-fly, March brown, 
and August dun, but most of them are 
very small. Changes in color take 
place in this species of ephemeridse as 
they advance from spring to summer, 
and as they retrograde again toward 
autumn. In the summer months their 
hues are warmer and lighter. Species 
after species arrives, one after the other 

[178] 



Duns Both Gay and Sombre 

in never-ending succession, the indi- 
vidual life of each insect, in its winged 
state, being only a few hours, or at 
most a few days. There is a wide dif- 
ference in many species between the 
male and the female, and Mr. Halford's 






Iron-blue dun Jenny spinner Pale evening dun 

latest patterns are tied in imitation 

both of male and female. While there 

are summer duns of brilliant hues — 

yellow, orange, red, and cinnamon — 

the prevailing color of duns may 

be said to be a bluish-gray. Their 

life in the winged state is short, 

but in their aquatic form they live 

sometimes two or even three years. 

All ephemeridse are aquatic in their 

earlier stages of existence. The eggs 
[179] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

are dropped into the water in large 
numbers by the females. They have 
three or four modes of life when in the 
larval state; some form tubes in the 
mud or clay in which they live, some 
live beneath stones, while others swim 
and crawl among the water plants. 
They are carnivorous and also feed 
upon vegetable life. When the insect 
has reached full growth in its aquatic 
form, after from six months to three 
years of existence, it seeks the surface 
of the water. Its thorax splits down 
the back, and it appears in its winged 
shape. It is not as yet perfect, though 
it has the form of a perfect insect and 
can fly. In this stage it is called pseud- 
imago, sub-imago, or pro-imago. But 
there remains a pellicle, or case, com- 
pletely covering it which has yet to be 
shed. Soon after the insect has ap- 
peared in this winged form it finds a 

[180] 



Imitations of Many Species 

resting place, its pellicle splits down 
the back, and there comes forth the 
perfect insect, differing much from its 
previous form in color and in markings, 
while its shape is entirely different from 
that of its aquatic state. Its wings, of 
which it has two pairs — the anterior 
pair large, the posterior pair much 
smaller — stand erect upon the body. 

To one who has made a study of an- 
gling books and of English angling 
catalogues it would appear that nearly 
all the described species of duns must 
have at some time been imitated in 
trout flies. In 1886, Mr. Halford, in 
"Floating Flies and How to Dress 
Them," gave a list of ninety patterns 
of dry-flies, most of which, though not 
all, belonged to the ephemeridse family, 
and in his '*Dry-Fly Entomology" 
(1897) he named one hundred patterns. 
The study of English flies is a necessity 

[1811 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

to American anglers, as at present we 
have no fly -fisher's entomology of our 
own, and, as has been stated, there 
seems to be no doubt that many species 
of duns are common to both English 
and American streams. The entomo- 
logical experiences of the author have 
no scientific value, but, in the spring of 
1911, in a few days he examined ap- 
proximately two hundred insects of the 
ephemeridse family caught upon Amer- 
ican waters. Unfortunately, he had no 
English entomology with him; but so 
far as he could carry in his mind the 
color and forms of the insects shown in 
British plates, the ephemeridse exam- 
ined seemed in no way different from 
those hatched in English streams. 

As time has gone on it has become 
customary for expert angler-entomolo- 
gists to reduce the number of patterns 
of floating flies considered necessary in 

[ 182 ] 



Mr, Halford's List of Flies 

dry-fly fishing. Mr. Halford in his 
latest work, "The Modern Develop- 
ment of the Dry-Fly," pubHshed in 
1911, reduced his number of patterns 
to thirty-three, as follows: Male and 
female patterns each of the green May- 
fly, brown May-fly, spent gnat, olive 
dun, dark oUve dun, ohve spinner, 
pale watery dun, pale watery spin- 
ner, iron-blue dun, iron-blue spin- 
ner, blue-winged olive, sherry spinner, 
black gnat, Welshman's button, and 
the olive (red) spinner (female), brown 
ant, small dark sedge, medium sedge, 
and cinnamon sedge. 

Mr. G. A. B. Dewar, in "The Book 
of the Dry-Fly," 1896 edition, says: 
"The tendency of dry-fly flshing is to- 
ward restricting the number of flies 
and patterns, therefore simplifying the 
most complex and confusing branch of 
angling. . . . The principle of dry-fly 

[183] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

fishing being to imitate nature as closely 
as possible, the angler is naturally in- 
clined to limit his choice of artificial 
flies to the imitation of those kinds 
of insects which are seen on the water 
in numbers. Such insects on dry-fly 
waters can almost be reckoned upon 
the fingers of both hands, and this list 
will, I think, be found to exclude no 
fly of importance to the angler: Olive 
and blue duns and the red spinner; 
iron -blue dun and sherry spinner; 
March brown and the great red spin- 
ner; yellow dun, red quill, May-fly, 
and spent gnat; alder, sedge, and the 
grannom. The list, for ordinary pur- 
poses, might be reduced to include only 
these flies: The olive dun and blue 
duns and their imago, the red spinner, 
the iron-blue dun, the March brown, 
the yellow dun, red quill, May-fly and 
its imago, the spent gnat, alder, sedge." 

[184] 



Mr. Dewafs Reduced List 

In 1910, Mr. Dewar further reduces 
his Hst, saying: "To-day my Hst would 
probably be olive dun, Wickham, hare's 
ear, iron-blue dun, red quill, sedge, 
alder and May-fly," while he calls the 
olive dun the "chief fly in this style of 
angling." 

In America, for the reason already 
given, namely, that we have no Ameri- 
can fly-fisher's entomology, anglers 
have been compelled to select patterns 
from the lists of Mr. Halford or other 
English writers, or depend at first upon 
advice from friends who have had ex- 
perience in dry-fly angling and have 
discovered patterns which they have 
found successful upon our streams. 
The following list of flies recommended 
by the author for American streams 
was published in 1911, and will, I 
think, prove useful: Whirling dun, 
pale evening dun, Wickham's fancy, 

[185 1 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

Jenny spinner, willow-fly, orange fish- 
hawk, soldier palmer, white miller, 
coachman, black gnat. I am firmly of 
the opinion that a skilful angler will 
have all the patterns of flies absolutely 
needed on at least many of our Eastern 
streams, if he uses this list. Of these, 
in my experience, limited indeed com- 
pared with that of various experts 
quoted in this book, I have found the 
whirling dun and Wickham's fancy to 
be all-around dependable lures. To- 
ward evening, when daylight is disap- 
pearing, a fly of lighter hue is recom- 
mended, so that the angler may be 
able to see the insect plainly both when 
it is in the air and on the water. At 
this time a valuable fly is the pale 
evening dun, the willow-fly, or the 
Jenny spinner, while the favorite fly 
of many at this time of the day — in 
fact, of some anglers all through the 

[186] 



The Favorite Old Coachman 

day — is the well-known old favorite, the 
coachman, "tied dry," of course. Since 
my last trip to the trout streams, in 
the summer of 1911, I have received a 
complete set of the latest Halford pat- 
terns, and hope to try many of them 
in the season of 1912. I have no doubt 
that no American angler need hesitate 
to go upon our streams with these imi- 
tations and no others. 



[187] 



CHAPTER XVI 



The History of the Floating Fly 
and Some of Its Interesting 
Literature 



WHO invented the artificial 
floating fly and the methods 
of using it? 
During the winter months of 1910- 
11, the author read in the neighbor- 
hood of one hundred and fifty anghng 
books, or at least looked carefully over 
their pages, having in mind, inciden- 
tally, the idea of discovering, if possible, 
the first mention of the dry-fly in an- 
ghng literature. In one old book, pub- 
lished about a century ago, he found a 
story of a French angler living in Scot- 
land who tied his imitation flies in 
what the author called "a pecuhar 

[188] 



The Dry-Fly in Its Infancy 

way," so that they "floated longer on 
the surface of the water after being 
cast than the ordinary wet fly." But 
in reading Mr. G. P. R. Puhnan's 
"Vade-Mecum of Fly-Fishing for 
Trout," pubhshed in 1851, I came 
across what seemed to be a descrip- 
tion of our present-day theory of the 
dry-fly. This subject, I have since 
learned, was mentioned in a much 
smaller edition of Mr. Pulman's work, 
published in 1846. In the summer of 
1911, I wrote to Mr. R. B. Marston, of 
London, asking for information about 
the early history of the dry-fly in Eng- 
land, and he in turn consulted Mr. 
Wilham Senior, the well-known *'Red 
Spinner" of anghng hterature. Mr. 
Senior referred to Mr. Pulman's book 
as containing the first mention of the 
dry-fly of which he was aware, but 
added: *'I am now away from all my 

[189] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

books and papers and cannot give you 
a definite reply to your question." 
Mr. Marston, in sending to me Mr. 
Senior's letter, said: "I feel sure it was 
in Pulman's ' Vade-Mecum,' 1846, that 
Mr. Senior discovered one of the first 
references to dry-fly fishing, though in 
earlier works there have been remarks 
which make one feel pretty certain it 
was not an unknown art." 

Feeling sure that all who are inter- 
ested in the floating fly will find en- 
tertainment in reading Mr. Pulman's 
early description of it, I quote from 
his book at some length: "It is im- 
possible to give infallible directions for 
the use of particular flies at every par- 
ticular time, although we shall else- 
where do all we consider necessary. 
Much must be left to the angler's own 
judgment; but we advise him to be 
careful of faUing into the error of con- 

[190] 



Mr. Pulman's Theories 

stantly changing his flies when fishing, 
thereby perplexing himself, and, gen- 
erally speaking, wasting time. Fish 
are proverbially capricious, and many 
of their habits, in regard to feeding 
and otherwise, depend on circumstances 
which, with all our knowledge of 
natural history, are not understood. 
The angler, therefore, must not be too 
ready to attribute his want of success 
at any time to a mistake in the selec- 
tion of his fly. There are many cir- 
cumstances to which it may with 
greater justice be traced. For in- 
stance, a certain fly is often thought- 
lessly said to be refused by fish on the 
sole account of its dissimilarity to some 
supposed favorite species, when a little 
observation would lead to another con- 
clusion — a conclusion perhaps very dif- 
ferent from the probably correct one, in 
many cases, of the unskilfulness of the 

[191] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

angler. But supposing this to be other- 
wise — supposing even the angler to be 
expert, and to have a good imitation 
of the fly at which the fish are rising 
well — say a fly of the dun tribe, preva- 
lent on every water. He makes his 
casts admirably. In the gentle stickle 
which hugs the opposite bank, a line of 
trout are rising gloriously, but not one 
of them is attracted by his well-pre- 
sented lure. He throws, and throws, 
and throws again, but still with the 
same result. He is at a loss to ac- 
count for the cause, except that it must 
be evidently something or other wrong 
in his fly. No such thing. We admit 
the fly to be a good imitation, to be 
nicely cast over rising fish repeatedly, 
time after time, and yet with not a 
rise is poor Piscator favored. Well, 
how is this.^ Piscator does not see — 
he is so wrapped up in the make of his 

[192} 



Feeding Fish Fastidious 

fly — that something more than make 
is necessary; that under certain cir- 
cumstances an imitation of the action 
of the natural fly is indispensable, and 
that when that action is not supphed, 
as in the present case, success cannot 
be had. But Piscator should reflect, 
and the seeming mystery would be un- 
folded thus: The fish are feeding, as 
they delight to do, upon flies ephem- 
eral, and have, perhaps, as the season 
advanced, become somewhat fastidious 
in their selection of particular species. 
Well, at the time in question, the line 
of fish in the stickle under the oppo- 
site bank aforesaid are gastronomi- 
cally moved toward a certain species of 
the class of flies referred to, every one 
of which is characterized by the habit 
of floating upon the surface of the water 
in reverse of the phryganidse, which 
generally hover above it and flit about 
[ 193 ] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

the banks. Impelled by some pecu- 
liarity of the atmosphere, or by some 
other cause which we cannot, and need 
not if we could, explain, the fish have 
come close to the surface to watch for 
their prey, which can thus be easily 
seized as the victims float along with- 
out further trouble on the part of the 
fish than gently lifting their mouths 
above the water. Now, the angler's 
fly is wet and heavy, and, thrown from 
the other side, has a certain weight of 
fine in addition. So, as it is not in the 
nature of things that this soaked arti- 
ficial fly can swim upon the surface as 
the natural ones do, it follows the al- 
ternative and sinks below the rising 
fish, the notice of which it entirely 
escapes, because they happen just then 
to be looking upward for the materials 
of their meal. Let a dry-fly be sub- 
stituted for the wet one, the fine 

[194] 



Heavy Odds Against a Trout 

switched a few times through the air 
to throw off its superabundant mois- 
ture, a judicious cast made just above 
the rising fish, and the fly allowed to 
float toward and over them, and the 
chances are ten to one that it will be 
seized as readily as a living insect. 
This dry-fly, we must remark, should 
be an imitation of the natural fly on 
which the trout are feeding, because 
if widely different the flsh, instead of 
being allured, would most likely be 
surprised and startled at the novelty 
presented, and would suspend feeding 
until the appearance of their favorite 
and familiar prey. 

"We mention this as an illustration 
of the importance of imitating action, 
and must not be understood to recom- 
mend the constantly substituting of a 
dry-fly for a wet one, over every rising 
fish. Better, as a general rule, when 

[195] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

the angler, after a few casts, finds the 
fish over which he throws unwiUing to 
be tempted, pass on in search of a 
more wiUing victim. This caution is 
the more necessary, because anglers 
too often expect to take every rising 
fish over which they throw; whereas 
it is really only under particular cir- 
cumstances, and in favorable situa- 
tions, that the motions of the natural 
insect can be so imitated as to prove 
successful, unless the fish are raven- 
ous and seize everything presented to 
them — a state of things not often ex- 
perienced. 

** There is much common sense in 
the following remarks by a writer in 
the Sporting Review: 'A fish, as may 
be witnessed from a bank, when on 
the feed, lies with his nose peering 
over a shore or ledge of rock, and 
pointed up the stream, ready to take 

[196] 



Duns Numerous and Popular 

the flies as they float downward, pro- 
vided there be nothing obtrusive in 
their appearance to awaken his sus- 
picions and restrain his appetite until 
the fly is past. The object is not so 
much to awaken his appetite by a fly 
more attractive than the natural one, 
which you can hardly expect to achieve, 
as to avoid starthng the fish when he 
has seen your fly and would take it, 
among others, if there were nothing 
obtrusive in its appearance.' 

"For this reason we recommend imi- 
tations of the duns as standard flies. 
There is not a river in the kingdom on 
which some species of this beautiful 
tribe of ephemeral flies is not to be 
found daily throughout the fishing sea- 
son, and generally more numerously 
than any other fly. The fish are fa- 
miliar with and fond of them, and their 
varieties are extremely numerous. We 

[197] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

have for many years fished with hardly 
any other flies than the red palmer and 
some shades of the duns, lighter or 
darker, larger or smaller, according to 
the particular states of the water and 
atmosphere, and the result is, our full 
concurrence in the remark of Mr. Ron- 
alds, that 'the duns form the sheet- 
anchor of the fly-fisher's practice.'" 

As Mr. Frederic M. Halford has 
been referred to frequently as the 
greatest of writers on the dry-fly, a 
subject so fascinating to an angler, a 
list of his books, in the order in which 
they appeared, is given: "Floating 
Flies and How to Dress Them," 1886; 
* 'Dry-Fly Fishing in Theory and Prac- 
tice," 1889; "Making a Fishery," 1895; 
"Dry-Fly Entomology," 1897; "An 
Angler's Autobiography," 1903; "The 
Modern Development of the Dry-Fly," 
1910. Another book is now on the 

[198 1 



Interesting Dry-Fly Books 

press, "The Dry-Fly Man's Hand- 
book." Among other English books 
interesting to the dry-fly angler may 
be mentioned: "The Book of the Dry- 
Fly," G. A. B. Dewar, 1896; "The 
Science of Dry-Fly Fishing and Sal- 
mon-Fly Casting," Fred. G. Shaw, 
1907, and "Dry-Fly Fishing for Trout 
and Grayling," by "Red Quill" (James 
Englefield), 1908. 

AngUng history does not inform us 
how long the dry-fly has been used, in 
its very limited way, upon American 
streams. The author has read many 
American works on angling, and the 
first reference to genuine dry-fly fishing 
that he has so far discovered in an 
American book is a short description of 
English chalk stream methods in Dr. 
Edward Breck's "The Way of the 
Woods," published in 1908. 

Mr. Thad. Norris, known in his day 

[199] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

as "the dean of American anglers," 
approached very closely to the the- 
ories of the dry-fly angler of to-day, 
when, in his interesting work, "The 
American Angler's Book," published in 
1864, he advised wetting the line occa- 
sionally to make it heavier, saying: 
"The weight of the line thus increased 
helps the cast. If it could be accom- 
plished, the great desideratum would 
be to keep the line wet and the flies 
dry. I have seen anglers succeed so 
well in their efforts to do this by the 
means just mentioned, and by whip- 
ping the moisture from their flies, that 
the stretcher and dropper would fall 
so lightly, and remain so long on the 
surface, that a fish would rise and take 
the fly before it sank." 

In the same chapter Mr. Norris gives 
a specific instance of this style of fish- 
ing: "It occurred at a pool beneath 
[ 200 ] 



A Veteran Learns a Lesson 

the fall of a dam on the Willowemoc, 
at a low stage of water — none running 
over. The fish were shy and refused 
every fly I offered them, when my 
friend put on a grannom for a stretcher 
and a Jenny spinner for a dropper. 
His leader was of the finest gut and 
his flies fresh, and by cracking the 
moisture from them between each 
throw, he would lay them so lightly 
on the glassy surface that a brace of 
trout would take them at almost every 
cast and before they sank or were 
drawn away. He had tied these flies 
and made his whip especially for his 
evening cast on this pool, and as the 
fish would not notice mine I was 
obliged to content myself with land- 
ing his fish, which in a half hour 
counted several dozen. Here was an 
exemplification of the advantage of 
keeping one's flies dry.'' 

[201] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

Mr. Genio C. Scott, another one 
of the best-known American anghng 
writers of his day, relates an incident 
in his "'Fishing in American Waters" 
(1869), that seems to show that a 
knowledge of our present day dry-fly 
methods would have been almost as 
valuable to him in fishing wilderness 
waters as it has been claimed by the 
author to be when used to-day on our 
much-fished streams. He was at the 
celebrated Middle Dam Camp, at the 
foot of Mollychunkemunk Lake, Me. 
He says: "It is here that I met a new 
experience in the character of trout, 
and think it worth relating for the 
benefit of anglers. While I believe 
that trout are not generally so discrim- 
inating in the selection of artificial flies 
as to evince acuteness of vision, yet I 
have experienced that at certain waters, 
when the streams are low and clear, a 

[202] 



Facetious Anglers Pleased 

copy of the living fly is more or less 
necessary to success. This is the case 
at the pool and rapids at the middle 
dam at the head of Rapid River, where 
a large shoal of apparently educated 
trout keep leaping and tumbling so 
that fifty to one hundred speckled 
beauties of from two to five pounds 
weight are always in sight. But it 
used to be said that they would not 
take an artificial fly; so, schoolboy-like, 
the guests at the camp sent every an- 
gler on his arrival 'to try below the 
dam,' as a sell. It pleased them to see 
a fresh man's face glow at the first 
sight of those sportive beauties, which 
acted as if half in coquetry and half in 
defiance of anglers. I felt thankful 
when witnessing the self-denying hos- 
pitality which prompted several an- 
glers, who were entire strangers to me, 
to cease anghng opposite the camp for 

[203] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

the sole purpose of showing me a pool 
full of very anxious trout." Mr. Scott 
tried many casts, "rested the pool" 
frequently, and devoted two days to 
furnishing in this manner amusement 
to the anglers of the camp, and doubt- 
less to the fish as well. After having 
exhausted the entire stock of flies in 
his book, the next day he sat on the 
dam and watched the rising fish to dis- 
cover what they were feeding on. 
Soon he saw a trout rise gracefully 
and swallow an ash-colored midge 
which had floated down from the dam. 
"On looking around me," he contin- 
ued, "I saw a cloud of drab ephemera 
rather larger than mosquitoes, swarm- 
ing over the dry timber dam, and ever 
and anon as one fell on the water, a 
trout rose very gracefully and swal- 
lowed it." He soon found in his fly- 
book an ash-midge, closely resembling 

[204] 



Mr. Scott Turns the Laugh 

the real insect, and immediately began 
taking the big fish, at last turning the 
laugh upon the guests who had sent 
him to this pool as a huge joke. 

As Mr. Scott, completely foiled after 
two days' hard work, sat on the dam 
and discovered not only that the trout 
were taking an ash-midge, but that 
they took it as it floated to them, who 
can doubt that this contemplative an- 
gler, with a vast knowledge of fish 
and fishing, presented his imitation 
in the same manner as the original 
insect had been offered to the trout, 
namely, by floating it down? 

Does it not strike the reader as 
somewhat curious that both these skil- 
ful and experienced anglers, Mr. Norris 
and Mr. Scott, having had presented to 
them in such a forceful manner the 
great advantage of using, at least under 
certain conditions, a floating imitation 

[205] 



Practical Dry-Fly Fishing 

of a natural insect, apparently did not 
pursue the subject further than the in- 
cidental mention, as quoted above, of 
this method of angling? 

For many years a comparatively 
small number of enthusiastic American 
anglers have fished certain well-known 
Eastern streams with the dry-fly. For 
several seasons it has been the favor- 
ite lure, in the fall, of ouananiche an- 
glers on some of the Maine streams. A 
few of the devotees of the floating fly 
have become so fascinated by dry-fly 
methods that they will use no other 
lure in fishing for trout. Their suc- 
cess has been so great in taking trout 
in summer from some of the low, clear 
streams of New York, that others fre- 
quenting these waters have eagerly 
adopted their method. But at pres- 
ent it cannot be said that the use of 
the dry-fly has become at all general 

[206] 



The Dry-Fly Winning Its Way 

in America. No longer ago than the 
spring of 1911, one of the largest New 
York dealers in fishing tackle — one of 
the few who have carried a stock 
of floating flies for a number of years 
— told the author that in his opin- 
ion there were not more than one 
hundred real dry-fly fishermen in the 
United States. During the past year, 
however, interest in this method of an- 
gling has been increasing rapidly, and 
the dry-fly bids fair to occupy as im- 
portant a place in America as it now 
occupies in England. Heretofore it 
has not fought for recognition; it 
has been almost totally neglected by 
American angling writers, and has been 
lightly tossed aside by many anglers as 
an English fad. As it becomes better 
known the beauties of its methods can- 
not help appealing to expert fly-fisher- 
men and winning a way to their hearts. 

[207] 



APPENDIX 

THE PROPER EQUIPMENT FOR A DRY-FLY 
ANGLER DESCRIBED BRIEFLY 

Clothing. — Optional with wearer, but 
inconspicuous clothes of some dark 
color are strongly recommended. 

For Wading. — Light wading stock- 
ings or trousers desirable, with heavy- 
soled brogues, hob-nailed; always wear 
heavy woollen socks between waders 
and brogues to prevent the wading 
stockings from being injured by sand 
and gravel. 

Rod. — Spht-bamboo with good back- 
bone, from nine to ten feet long; 
weight, from four and one-half to six 
ounces. Perhaps the best all-around 
rod is one nine and one-half feet long, 
weighing about five and one-half ounces. 

Line. — English enameled and water- 
proofed, tapered; weight to fit the rod, 
[ 209 ] 



Appendix 

but as a general rule E is the proper 
size. 

Reel. — Single click, of a weight that 
balances rod properly. 

Leader. — Standard dry-fly leader is 
nine feet long, tapered from heavy 
gut at the line end to finest undrawn 
at the fly end. When casting against 
a strong wind a leader of six feet is 
more easily managed. 

Fly Boxes. — Several kinds of boxes 
made to hold eyed-flies may be found 
in the leading tackle stores. One good 
pattern is a box having twelve or fif- 
teen compartments for dry-flies, with 
transparent covers. Another is a box 
with patent clips, holding the hook by 
the bend. 

Landing Net. — Almost any good net 
will do, so long as the handle is not too 
long. There are several styles of fold- 
ing nets that are very convenient for 
stream fishing. Do not choose one of 
the smallest nets made, as trouble may 
follow when a large fish is hooked. 

[210] 



Appendix 

Creel. — Any one of the various styles 
of willow baskets. Canvas creels are 
convenient, but do not keep the fish in 
such good condition as those made of 
willow. 

Oil, — One of the several prepara- 
tions made for oiling dry-flies, or 
white odorless, stainless paraffin oil, 
sold by dealers in oil and paint. 

Oiler. — A bottle of glass or metal 
having a small brush in the stopper. 
Various kinds of oilers, made especially 
for the purpose, are kept in stock by 
dealers. 

Scissors and Tweezers. — A small pair 
of scissors, vest-pocket size, or a com- 
bination gut cutter and tweezers, for 
cutting off superfluous ends of gut. 

Deer Fat. — A small can of deer fat 
for greasing lines; this keeps the line in 
good condition and makes it float. 

Leader Book. — Convenient and nec- 
essary for carrying leaders. A book 
with chamois pockets keeps leaders in 
good condition. 

[ 211 ] 



Appendix 

Leader Box. — Contains felt pads for 
keeping leaders moist. Put leaders in 
box at least an hour before using, but 
be sure and remove them at the end 
of the day. 

Flies. — The following list of flies is 
recommended by the author for use on 
American streams. To give a complete 

10 II 12 13 14 15 16 17 

uuuuLlll 



I 00 000 



list of all flies that might be used at 
times to advantage, would be undesir- 
able and confusing, as their name is le- 
gion. For American waters flies tied 
on larger hooks than those commonly 
used on the English chalk streams are 
strongly recommended. Many expert 
American anglers use dry-flies tied on 
No. 12 and No. 14 hooks. In the ac- 
companying plate, showing hooks of 
various sizes, the English way of num- 

[212] 



Appendix 

bering them (called the "new style") 
is shown by the figures below the hooks, 
while the "old style" commonly used 
in America is shown by the figures 
above the hooks: 



WHIRLING DUN 



Wings. — Medium starling. 

Body. — Water rat's fur, tinged with yellow. 

Hackle. — Ginger cock. 

Whisk, — Red cock's hackle. 



WICKHAM S FANCY 

Wings. — Medium, or light starling. 

Body. — Flat gold, ribbed with fine gold wire. 

Hackle. — Red cock's, run down body. 

PALE EVENING DUN 

Wings. — Light starling. 

Body. — Pale fawn-colored wool ; or yellow mar- 
ten's fur spun on pale fawn-colored silk 
thread. 

Hackle. — Pale dun. 

Whisk. — Pale dun hackle. 

JENNY SPINNER (hACKLE FLY) 

Body. — White floss silk, tied at thorax and 
tail with four or five turns of deep red- 
brown silk. 

[213] 



Appendix 

Hackle. — Very light dun. 
Whisk. — Very light dun hackle. 

WILLOW FLY (hackle FLY) 

Body. — Water rat's or mole's fur, ribbed with 

yellow silk thread. 
Hackle. — Light blue dun. 
Whisk. — Blue dun cock's hackle. 

ORANGE FISH HAWK (hACKLE FLy) 

Body. — Orange silk, ribbed with gold. 
Hackle. — Gray. 

OLIVE DUN 

Wings. — Starling. 
Body. — Dyed olive quill. 
Hackle. — Dyed yellow olive. 
Whisk. — Olive dun cock's hackle. 

SOLDIER PALMER (hACKLE FLy) 

Body. — Red wool, ribbed with gold. 
Hackle. — Red cock's from head to tail. 

SILVER SEDGE 

Wings. — Landrail. 

Body. — White floss (or white condor quill), 

ribbed with fine silver wire. 
Hackle. — Pale sandy ginger cock, from head to 

tail. 
(The well-known Beaverkill is patterned after 
this fly.) 

[214 1 



Appendix 

RED SPINNER 

Wings. — Pale starling. 

Body. — Red floss, ribbed with silver gimp or 
thread; or white horse-hair dyed brown- 
red. 

Hackle. — Red game cock. 

Whisk. — Red cock's hackle. 

WHITE MILLER 

Wings. — Pure white. 

Body. — White silk, ribbed with gold. 

Hackle. — White. 

COACHMAN 

Wings. — White . 
Body. — Peacock Herl. 
Hackle. — Red cock's. 

BLACK GNAT 

Wings. — Pale starling. 

Body. — Peacock quill, dyed black. 

Hackle. — Black starling. 

MR. HALFORD's LATEST PATTERNS 

Green May -fly, male and female. 
Brown May -fly, male and female. 
Spent gnat, male and female. 
Olive dun, male and female. 
Dark olive dun, male and female. 
Olive spinner, male and female. 
Pale watery dun, male and female. 
[215] 



Appendix 

Pale watery spinner, male and female. 
Iron-blue dun, male and female. 
Iron-blue spinner, male and female. 
Blue winged olive, male and female. 
Sherry spinner, male and female. 
Black gnat, male and female. 
Welshman's button, male and female. 
Olive (red) spinner, female. 
Brown ant. 
Small dark sedge. 
Medium sedge. 
Cinnamon sedge. 



[216 



MAY 28 1912 



